Ed, Edd, n Eddy Fallout: Saviors of the Wastes
by Evil Tim 17
Summary: Twelve young adults who have spent several years of their lives trapped in Vault 117 will soon find themselves locked in a struggle for survival in the Wasteland as they battle raiders, monsters, and themselves to restore peace and freedom to the Wastes.
1. Prelude

_**Disclaimer**__: I do not own Ed, Edd, n Eddy, Danny Antonucci does and Fallout belongs to Bethesda, I however do own any original ideas and characters that I come up with._

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**Ed, Edd, n Eddy: Saviors of the Wastes**

**Prelude**

**War… war never changes.**

The day that the first bombs fell and the dreaded war began marked the inevitable end of humanity. The Russians invaded the United States in a joint effort with the Japanese who invaded Alaska. Europe fell into chaos as World War Three broke out. It quickly began to revert back to its barbaric Dark Age past of violence and the constant struggle for power. The world was in chaos but luckily none of the countries had gotten desperate enough to use nuclear weapons… yet. Russia was the first and its victim was America after an incident where the Americans (in a desperate attempt to force the Russians into an early submission) killed hundreds of thousands of Russian civilians after bombing several major cities. As the world consumed itself in atomic fire as rival there was a quiet little town named Peach Creek where twelve kids and their parents stood by and watched as their world crumbled around them. Luckily they were able to escape and fled to the nearby Vault 117 for safety; a Vault that was never supposed to be constructed. Peach Creek and the surrounding towns had very little influence or importance but with the help of local contractor and several hundred thousand dollars Vault 117 was built. It is in Vault 117 where the twelve children would mature and emerge someday as young adults. Learning from the past mistakes of humanity they would help in forging a new beginning for mankind. They alone may hold the key to the survival of humanity or its downfall. They would all soon learn that without great sacrifice nothing can be accomplished.

As the ashes of the Third World War slowly settled to the Earth's charred surface and the fighting had completely ceased, the survivors of the human race began to return to the Earth's new, quiet, charred, wasteland like surface after being shut up inside metal underground Vaults for years. However, Vault 117 did not allow its inhabitants to return to the now hostile and rough Wasteland above, but instead kept them in the Vault where their Overseer believed they would all be safe. The now young adults of Peach Creek though would soon find themselves thrown out of the comfort zone of their quiet, metal haven and would now be forced to face the hardened above ground that is now Earth. Their journey will be a tough one, filled with death, sorrow, violence, but hope; a hope that maybe humanity can make up for all of its past sins. That maybe humanity could forge a new future, one without wars and violence against one another. A future worth fighting for, no matter what the cost…


	2. Chapter 1: Escape Plan

C**hapter 1: Escape Plan**

The first rays of early morning sun were already baking the barren landscape of the Earth. A small lizard scurried from rock to rock looking for an escape from the unforgiving sun. It quickly crawled over several rocks until it came upon a large cave in a mountainside. It quickly scurried inside seeking relief from the sun and a place where it could rest in peace. Having a few close calls with some large cave rats it found a human skull where it hid inside. Looking around it lifted its head and saw a large, metallic, cog-shaped door that read "117". It stared at it before some chattering from the cave rat it encountered earlier echoed in the cave causing it to make a break for some better cover.

It was still in the early hours of the Vault where only a handful of Vault citizens were up and about. A young adult lies in bed sleeping on his back; waiting to be awoken by the annoying buzzing sound of his alarm clock. He kept his simple room spotless. It was an easy task for the young man since all it contained was a short, wooden dresser, his uncomfortable bed, a night stand, and a small workbench where he conducted his experiments and worked on new inventions. Meanwhile, the young man's father walked into his son's small room. He was about six feet tall, had a small, black goatee, slightly tanned skin, a broad nose, dark brown eyes, and was wearing the standard Vault security uniform that all security officers wear.

He walked over to his son and gently shook the young lad and said in a hushed tone, "Eddward, it's time to wake up, you don't want to be late to work do you?"

Edd slowly sat up in bed and rubbed the sleep from his tired eyes that had accumulated over the course of the night. Edd hadn't changed too much over time; his now more defined adult facial features replaced the boyish looks of his childhood years. He has a broad nose much like his father, pale skin, dark blue eyes; he struggled to grow facial hair but was proud of the few hairs that had begun to sprout on his chin. He still sported his black sock-like hat, which covered his hair, save a few black strands that hung out of the back. He also still has the gap between his front teeth, since due to the war his parents never got around to getting him braces. Edd has also grown slightly taller and is now five' ten" but he is still rather weak physically but what he lacks in strength he makes up for with his intellect.

He stretched and yawned while mumbling, "I'm up father. What time is it?"

"It's 6:07, so you need to go ahead and start getting ready." Edd's father replied.

Edd begrudgingly hopped out of bed and slowly began walking to the shower. He looked around his family's simple house, if you could call it that since all it had was a small kitchen, a table hardly big enough to fit four people at and a couch. Edd looked at a family picture with him, his dad and his mom, who in the picture had dark brown shoulder length hair, pale skin, green eyes, and a small slightly pointy nose. Edd had passed by this photo hundreds of times but today he took more time to analyze the photo. He started to think of times before and what it was like before both he and his family, along with the rest of the families in Peach Creek, were forced to live in an underground Vault. The picture had been taken when Edd was only twelve and so his features were more boyish than what they were now at age eighteen.

He found himself reminiscing about his life prior to the war. He and his best friends attempting to scam the other children of the Cul-De-Sac, playing in the junkyard which for Edd was never that enjoyable due to all the filth but he was with his friends which was all that mattered.

"Oh the good old days…" Edd sighed, "Where have you gone?"

Edd continued to think about his youth and how he and his fellow friends were so naïve and sheltered from the chaos that surrounded them on all sides. None of them saw the war coming and the only time they ever heard any mention of it was when their parents discussed it at a school picnic or any other social gathering. Before they knew it their parents were rushing them out of their houses and into some large, metal, underground asylum that was to protect them from the nuclear storm that quickly approaching their peaceful town. Youth destroyed, lives uprooted, dreams crushed, and their only hope was that now they would be spending the rest of their lives in an underground Vault. Which for them wasn't exactly the kind of hope that they were looking for but at least they still had their lives right?

In Edd's opinion, the only good thing that came out of the whole thing was the fact that now he could actually spend more time with his parents. Prior to the war and the move to the Vault, Edd's parents both worked for a huge business that gave them extremely high paying jobs but that required them to work long hours and go on regular business trips. Edd spent most of his early childhood alone and sad. He was forced to fend for himself and answer to every sticky note that his parents left for him. Edd loved his parents and understood that they were only doing what they thought was best. He did anything that his parents asked of him whether that be to mow the lawn, take out the trash, clean the dishes, excel in school, and strive to get a well-paying and successful career and those were only a few things. Unfortunately, his parents didn't realize that they were hurting their son a lot more than what he showed.

Edd even at the young age of ten knew what it meant to be depressed. He even at times contemplated hurting himself but his friends were always there to cheer him up when he was feeling down. Another good thing was that at least they had survived, unlike millions of others who had perished in the bombings… Edd stopped abruptly after running into the door to the bathroom. "Ouch!" Edd complained, rubbing his now slightly red and throbbing nose.

"I need to more pay attention next time." Edd noted before entering the bathroom.

The bathroom itself was simple, being completely white and sporting a toilet, sink, mirror and of course, a shower. Edd quickly undressed, turned on the water and hopped into the refreshing, warm water. He didn't waste any time however and was soon getting changed into his standard issue Vault 117 jumpsuit. After getting dressed he walked into the kitchen where his mother was cooking breakfast.

Edd's father was just stepping out of the door when he called back, "Bye Julie, bye Eddward! See you two when I get home!" He then stepped out of the house and began walking down the hall towards his station.

"Good morning Eddward! How many pancakes would you like honey?" Edd's mom asked cheerily.

Edd could never understand how his mom was always so happy in the morning time.

"Good morning mother, I'll have three." Edd replied tiredly.

Edd's mom walked over and set a plate of golden, steaming pancakes in front of him along with a small container of syrup and some OJ. The one thing about that Vault is that even though the food looked good at times it usually never tasted how it looked (unless it did look bad in which case one should assume that it does taste bad). Edd however hungrily attacked his pancakes, after adding some syrup of course and downed his OJ with equal ferocity.

"Wow son, you must be rather hungry this morning!" Edd's mom chirped.

"Yes, I was rather famished, thank you mother." Edd answered, getting up from the table and starting towards the front door.

"Goodbye Eddward, have a nice day!"

"I will mother, see you when I get back." Edd replied, and then proceeded out of his humble abode and into the hallway where he was met by his two best friends, Ed and Eddy.

"Hiya Double-D! Did you have as good a morning as I did?" Ed yelled as he grabbed Edd and gave him a powerful bear hug.

"Ed… air!" Edd gasped.

"Oops, sorry Double-D!" Ed said stupidly, before letting go of his friend.

Ed, he hadn't changed much at all over the years. He still loves chickens, despite the fact that they were most likely all dead but Edd and Eddy decided it would be best not to tell him that just yet. He still adores all of his odd food interests; gravy, pudding skins, and of course buttered toast, though the Vault doesn't exactly have a large supply of pudding skins. Unfortunately, Ed's intellect is still of that of a five year old who suffers from multiple mental disorders but he occasionally does have random spurts of intelligence which always seem to come about in only the direst of situations. His strength also has increased tremendously and his features have hardly changed over the years besides that he looks a bit more like a man than a young boy. He still faintly has his freckles and a few pimples, though his back acne has cleared up completely, much to everyone's relief. He has grown even taller, putting him around six' seven". Ed did however change his hairstyle to the Marines style haircut, which effectively makes him look like an extremely buff, redheaded Marine but he's still very lovable despite his somewhat intimidating appearance. Ed still has his unibrow and has sage green eyes.

"What the hell took ya so long sock head?" Eddy yelled, annoyed as usual.

Eddy has changed the most out of the three Eds both physically and mentally. He grew more hair and now has his jet black hair spiked up which seems brings out his angry, dark brown eyes. He is still rather short for his age but has grown a few inches over the years putting him at five' six". He has grown paler, like most everyone else in the Vault has from the lack of sunlight for several years. Eddy did however get stronger and also became a better fighter and can even at times hold off Kevin on his own. Unfortunately, over the years Eddy's attitude towards people and life has turned bitter and cold. He no longer scams people and gave it up when he was twelve. After his brother got beat up and when the Eds had befriended the kids his life had turned around completely and life was good for everyone. But, once the war spread and the bombs fell, forcing them to take cover inside of the Vault things turned sour.

When it came time to retreat to Vault 117 Eddy's parents and Kevin's parents hadn't signed up yet. There were only five spots left and Eddy's family beat Kevin's family to the spots first. Kevin's dad was and had always been a drunk as well as a very cruel man. Being the selfish and drunken man that he was, he secured both he and his son a spot in the Vault, leaving Kevin's mom as well as the one person in Kevin's life that protected him from the wrath of his father. Kevin was devastated by the news and became angry at his father for abandoning his mom and was also angry at Eddy for his family taking up three of the last five spots. Eddy and Kevin had become close friends after the events of BPS and even though Eddy apologized time after time, Kevin never forgave him. They often got into fights forcing the Vault guards to have to break them up. This continued for several years until Eddy's father succumbed to cancer and died just a few months ago. Eddy was devastated and it only got worse when Kevin made a remark at the funeral, "You had that one coming, asshole…" and walked away.

Eddy didn't retaliate; he just simply walked back to his home and wept bitterly, swearing he would get Kevin back for everything he had done to him. He never really was the same after that and cursed, was often in a bad mood, snuck a drink here and there, and simply just wanted to be left alone.

"Sorry Eddy, I got distracted this morning and lost track of time." Edd replied, still recovering from Ed's painful show of affection.

"Yeah whatever, let's just get to work before we're late." Eddy said angrily, as he started to walk down the hall.

"Butter toast!" Ed yelled loudly, running to catch up with his vertically challenged friend.

They walked down the winding, metal hallways that led to their separate work stations. Edd got a job as a scientist and engineer and was always having to fix broken pipes, machines, and whatever else needed fixing. Ed became the Vault's janitor, which in his eyes was the greatest job in the world. Eddy was late the day of the G.O.A.T. and got the job of Pipboy designer, despite the fact that he marked random answers on the test. While being a Pipboy designer isn't exactly the most fun job in the world it has allowed Eddy to learn a thing or two about the gadget and he has even customized he and his friend's Pipboy 3000's to fit their personalities and needs.

They continued walking down the winding metal corridors of the Vault. Ed started to talk about his favorite comic book while Edd listened as best he could to all of the gory descriptions that Ed was spouting off. Eddy simply continued to walk in silence and ignored his annoying banter completely.

"…and so then the zombie mutant ripped the man's stomach open and began to feast upon his innards!" Ed said animatedly.

"Wow, that's amazing Ed! Don't you think so Eddy?" Edd asked, trying to throw the attention on Eddy and off of himself for just a moment.

Eddy stared over at Ed who was jumping up and down waiting for Eddy to answer. Eddy turned to face Ed and when he did he snatched the comic and threw it across the hallway.

"Ed! Shut the fuck up! You're giving me a damn migraine!" Ed's face went from happy to complete despair, as he continued to walk along but now at a much slower pace.

"Eddy! That was completely uncalled for! You need to apologize to Ed!" Edd reprimanded.

"Like I really give a-" Eddy was about to finish until he heard an all too familiar voice yell,

"Who the hell threw this shit at me?"

Kevin was at the end of the hallway and was fuming. He spotted the Eds and immediately targeted Eddy for his next jibe.

"Hey Jackson! You the douche who threw this trash at me?"

Eddy kept walking until he was ten feet away from Kevin and responded with, "Yeah sure did and I'll do more than that if you don't get the hell out of my way Jones!"

Kevin had certainly changed over the years, if not more than anyone else. Things were going well; Nazz was his girlfriend, Kevin was the star of both the football and basketball teams, scouts were already talking about him even though he was just thirteen at the time. By the time he would reach his senior year he had no doubt that he would be offered an athletic scholarship to the college of his choice. He had a promising future. But once his mom died and he had to retreat to the Vault with his abusive father due to the war, things just went downhill from there. Nazz broke up with him after he tried to get her to sleep with him, with the end of the world his sports career ended, college didn't matter anymore and to top it all off Kevin's father was still abusive and during his drunken rampages would often beat him mercilessly. Kevin even started to follow his father's footsteps in that he took up the bottle himself. Most everyone pitied him but Eddy hated him and stared down his rival with hate and malice in his eyes.

Kevin could no longer contain his rage and within seconds was filling the short distance between Eddy and himself. Eddy saw this and braced himself for the incoming blow. Kevin in blind fury tackled Eddy, forcing him to the ground with a loud thud which reverberated off of the metal floor. Eddy, despite his preparation, could not hold back the tide of raw power that seemed to be pulsing through Kevin's well-muscled body. Kevin began to wail on Eddy with all of his might while Eddy merely raised his arms to protect his face from being pummeled. Eddy received several brutal hits to his face, causing his nose and lips to start bleeding and bruises were already forming on his face. Eddy, with Herculean strength, forced Kevin off of him and was quickly on his feet again. With the odds on his side now Eddy was ready for some payback and stomped on Kevin's ribs and stomach knocking the breath out of Kevin's lungs. Kevin coughed up some blood from the two powerful blows but had received worse before and as Eddy was bringing his foot down for a third strike Kevin grabbed Eddy's foot and threw him back onto the unforgiving metal floor.

All the while Ed and Edd stood there in horror as the two young men before them locked in pitched combat continued to throw punches and kicks at each other with lightning fast speed. The fight was spiraling out of control and was getting more and more violent with each passing second. Eddy's face was already bruising up and had blood leaking from his nose and mouth. Kevin wasn't fairing any better with his bleeding lip and bruised and bleeding nose and probably had a cracked rib or two.

Eddy threw a left hook which connected with Kevin's jaw and then with his right fist, hit him square in the chest sending Kevin straight to the floor. Eddy's shoulders were heaving as he breathed heavily from the exertion of the fight. His breaths were slow and labored but at least he was still standing. Eddy walked over to Kevin and stood over of him.

"Not so tough now are you-" but before Eddy finished Kevin, in the blink an eye kicked Eddy square in the groin which sent Eddy reeling backwards in agony.

"Shit…" Eddy groaned, as the feeling of nausea swept over his body. Eddy collapsed to his knees as Kevin walked over to him, smiling maliciously at his weakened opponent.

"What was that Eddy? Not so tough now are you Jackson?" Kevin lifted Eddy up and with his fist drawn back was about to punch Eddy until Kevin felt the weight of a two-hundred plus pounds violently slam into his weakened body.

Eddy fell back to the ground and laid there as Ed began to mercilessly pound on Kevin's face and body. Edd ran to assist Eddy who was still suffering from the blow to his groin and was in severe pain. Ed continued to pound on Kevin until four men dressed in security uniforms came to stop him followed by another man dressed in a standard Vault 117 jumpsuit. He stood at around six' three", had a hawk-like nose, short dirty blonde hair, a well-trimmed goatee, blue eyes, and had an aura of power irradiating from his presence; this was the Overseer of Vault 117. The Overseer was the old mayor of Lemon Brook and because his town was able to raise more money for the construction of the Vault he was put in charge. The guards (most of whom are Lemon Brook thugs) struggled to pull Ed off of Kevin, who by now was almost unconscious.

"I want these filthy mongrels in my office now!" the Overseer ordered harshly.

Each guard took one of the four boys and forcibly escorted them to the Overseer's Office.

Edd was the most frightened out of the rest of the group. "Uhh… Sir I…I didn't do anything sir! Please let me go!" Edd pleaded to the Overseer, who simply ignored his cries and continued to walk at his feverishly fast pace.

They soon arrived at a metal sliding door with the words "Overseer's Office" written on a sign above. The doors make a high pitched metallic creak due to lack of oil on the gears that opened them.

"Will someone please oil that damn door, it's driving me nuts!" The Overseer yelled as he covered his ears at the sound of the scraping.

The guards forced each of them to take a seat as the Overseer walked over to his desk and took a seat in his leather swivel chair. Eddy and Kevin were starting to come to as Ed sat there with a stern, serious face, never removing eye contact from the man who sat before them. He was clutching his right hand which was slightly bruised from punching Kevin so hard and it was starting to swell a bit. Edd was as pale as a ghost and was shaking and sweating uncontrollably. _"I'm innocent, what am I doing in here?"_Edd screamed internally. The Overseer then began to analyze each and every one of them carefully. He took careful note of every muscle movement, facial expression and bead of sweat that fell from the boy's faces, whether the perspiration was from the previous physical exertion or just pure fear as in Edd's case.

"I want someone to tell me why the hell I shouldn't each and every one of you lined up against a wall and shot!" The Overseer yelled angrily.

All Edd could do was scream to himself mentally and repeat over and over again that he was innocent but after a few tense seconds he spoke up and stuttered

"Well sir, you see uh, we were…"

Edd was struggling to find the right words to say until Eddy answered for him. "Are you blind? Kevin, Ed, and I got into a fight you idiot!"

Edd was relieved that Eddy spoke up but was appalled at what he just heard leave his friend's lips. This was the Overseer who was sitting before them, the most powerful man in all of Vault 117!

"What did you just say?" the Overseer asked harshly, lunging forward in his seat, his eyes focused solely on Eddy.

"You heard what I said asshole." Eddy said coldly as he stared down the Overseer.

The Overseer's face turned from white to beet red after Eddy's rude remark.

"Boy, if I were you I would shut your damn mouth before I shut it for you!" the Overseer yelled as he reached into his desk and pulled out a pistol. Eddy shut his mouth but continued to glare at the Overseer.

Kevin sat quietly, smirking to himself the whole time. As long as Eddy kept his shenanigans up he would probably get off with only a warning! The Overseer continued to sit there, staring angrily at each of the boys in front of him. Eventually, he sat back and relaxed back into the chair spinning from side to side slightly, still glaring at them.

Finally, after what felt like hours, he calmly said "Eddward, you may leave, the rest of you will stay here while we figure out a punishment worthy of your crime."

Edd was glued to his chair in fear still and it took a few seconds for him to comprehend what he just heard. He quickly got up thanked the Overseer and darted out of the office as quickly as he legs could carry him.

Edd ran into the hallway and leaned against the wall closest to him, breathing heavily. He slowly slid down the wall and sighed as he hit the ground. "What a relief." He muttered to himself as he let out another long sigh of relief.

He was still worried though as to what would happen to his two friends. _"There's no way that the Overseer would actually kill them! No of course not, our parents would ever allow such a thing to occur."_Edd decided mentally_._Edd continued to sit outside in the hallway, waiting for his friends.

He continued to look at his Pipboy 3000 every couple of minutes to check the time and all the while wondering what was taking them so long to come up with a punishment. Finally and much to Edd's relief, the three boys walked out of the office with Kevin coming out first with a huge grin on his face followed by Ed and Eddy, the latter staring at Kevin angrily while Ed had a look of sorrow and despair on his face.

Edd wondered what Kevin was happy about as he approached his friends and asked "Well… what happened?"

Eddy was the first to speak up, "That bastard is making it so that Ed and I can only leave our houses to go to and from work and to top it off he cut our meal rations in half for two weeks! But do you want to know what the worst part is? Kevin got off with just a fucking warning!" Eddy yelled out in frustration and was turning blood red as he continued to storm down the hallway to his job, which by now he was late for.

Ed was starting sob uncontrollably. "How am I supposed to survive two weeks without gravy or buttered toast?" Ed choked out between tears.

Edd put a comforting hand on Ed and assured him everything would be alright. Eddy however stopped and turned back to face Edd.

"Fuck… hey wait, I just got an idea!" Eddy exclaimed with a mischievous face.

"Uhh, Eddy I don't like the looks of this." Edd said nervously.

"Shut up, you haven't even heard the plan yet sock head! But anyways here it is, how's about the three of us escape from this dump and start a new life on the outside?" Eddy was smiling from ear to ear at the brilliance of his newly developed plan.

Ed was still whimpering about his punishment and so most of it flew over his head. However, Edd heard every word of it all and was far from pleased with the plan.

"Eddy! Are you out of your mind? We can't just leave the Vault and besides, we don't even know what's on the surface or if it is even safe to go up there yet!"

"Yeah, well it's better than rotting in this hellhole until the end of eternity!" Eddy yelled in frustration.

Several seconds of awkward silence followed as the two Ed boys glared at each other furiously. Eddy finally broke the silence "Alright, listen Double-D, how about you help Ed and I come up with a plan and we'll leave, while you just stay here and rot, unless of course you want to join us." Eddy said coldly.

Edd sat there taking in his friend's words and pondered them for a moment before saying with a hint of regret, "Fine, I'll help devise a plan for the two of you but I won't be joining you guys, not this time."

Eddy's face lit up with excitement at his brainy friend's words. Rubbing his hands together greedily Eddy said a few words before they parted for work.

"Okay boys, after work today we'll all go to Ed's house and start coming up with a plan but until then let's get our asses to work before we're any later." With that Eddy started off towards his work place.

"Oh boy, oh boy, do I love work!" Ed shouted before running off happily.

Edd sat there for a moment then slowly began making his way towards the science lab. He didn't like the idea of helping his friends leave the Vault but he didn't know what else to do. He refused to turn them in but he didn't want to break the rules and join them_. "Then again I'm already technically breaking the rules as it is by helping them. I suppose I could plead innocent if they're caught… no wait that would be lying and I'd be betraying my friends! Eddy's been rubbing off on me too much…"_Edd thought as he continued to walk towards his work.

Unfortunately for the Eds, they weren't the only ones in the hallway at the time. Jimmy had been hiding behind a nearby wall, listening in on their entire conversation, soaking in each and every word. Jimmy couldn't resist the urge to go tell the others. Shaking slightly at what he just heard he dashed down the hallway, after making sure that the coast was clear, and went searching for his best friend Sarah to tell her the news!


	3. Chapter 2: Intelligence Leak

**Chapter 2: Intelligence Leak**

Jimmy ran as fast as his wimpy legs could carry him as he tore down the hallways of the Vault, already panting from running for only a few short minutes.

Jimmy had changed some physically over the years but his biggest change has been that now he was even wimpier and was more easily frightened by even the smallest of things. He does however still continue to keep his hair the way that it has always been since as he has often said that it helps to bring out his light blue eyes. He has also grown a little bit taller putting him at around five' eight" but he is still very skinny and fragile, making him the weakest out of everybody. Jimmy had always been paranoid about things but after the war and all of the mayhem that it caused it doesn't take much to make Jimmy want to cower in a corner and cry out for help. He's still friends with Sarah and they've become even closer over the years but everyone else (besides Nazz and Sarah) frightens him to some degree.

He continued to run until he finally spotted his friend's bright orange hair at the end of the hallway. "Sarah! I have something important to tell you!" he cried out as he ran to her, tears starting to form in his eyes.

Sarah turned around to reveal that she had been talking to Nazz who gave him a warm smile and waved as he ran up to them, out of breath.

"What's got you all worked up now silly?" Sarah asked, looking as happy as could be.

Sarah still had an attitude problem but it has improved slightly, much to Ed's relief but it still doesn't take much to set her off. She has however developed a lot, and looks more mature, has long, silky, orange hair, which fits perfectly with her olive green eyes. A lot of the other men in the Vault always give her looks but she usually ignores them. She has grown in height as well, making her about five' five". While her temperament has changed only a bit, Sarah's social standing has certainly increased by a lot after she and Jimmy both started to exclusively hang out with Nazz, Kevin, and Rolf. Nazz and Sarah soon became close friends which meant for Jimmy that his childhood friend wasn't around at times, much to his despair.

Jimmy caught his breath then shouted, "The Eds are making a plan to escape from the Vault! Sarah, what are we going to do?"

Jimmy may not like the Eds as much as the next guy but being the paranoid kid that he is it still frightened him that someone would be crazy enough to do such a thing.

"Are you sure dude? That just sounds crazy?" Nazz asked with a hint of worry.

Nazz had changed some but not a lot over the time skip. Besides maturing into a pretty, young woman and growing out her blonde hair, she hadn't changed too much personality wise. She has however been through a lot with Kevin. They started dating a year before the bombs dropped but broke up after Kevin tried to get her to sleep with him two years later. She was heartbroken to have to end it but knew it was for the best. He had also been slightly abusive at times but since she has some defensive skills, she normally was able to get out of those situations. Nazz also has learned to accept the Eds as much as is humanly possible. She also got past her ditzy blonde stage and is now the second most intelligent teen out of the group.

"Yes! I know that I'm sure! I heard them planning in the halls!" Jimmy yelled, as a panic attack started to take control of him.

The two girls finally understood that Jimmy was telling the truth. Nazz was worried that they might get themselves hurt or worse while Sarah was fuming with anger towards her brother Ed.

Red faced and full of rage Sarah shouted, "When my parents find out about this Ed is going to be in so much trouble!"

Nazz on the other hand calmly said, "Dudes, don't you think we should like, tell someone about this? I mean they're friends and I would hate to see any of them get hurt."

"Nazz is right! Come on Sarah!" Jimmy yelled as he sprinted off to find the others.

Sarah groaned in anger and ran off after Jimmy. She was easily able catch up to him and then grabbed him by the collar of his jumpsuit and yanked him back.

"Hey Jimmy, did you forget the fact that we have work first?" Sarah half yelled at her friend.

Jimmy blushed a bit in embarrassment and replied, "Oops, sorry, I almost forgot. Well maybe after work when the others meet in the cafeteria we can tell the others?"

Nazz walked up and replied cheerfully "Sounds like a plan dude!"

"Yeah I guess that will work…" Sarah said, still agitated from the news.

"Okay, after work then, well see you two later and remember the plan!" Jimmy chirped as he ran towards his workplace.

The two girls sat there for a second staring at Jimmy as he disappeared into the Vault's hallways before saying their goodbyes to each other and walking off to their respective workplaces.

* * *

Edd was walking about the science lab cleaning up some dirty test tubes and beakers where he had just finished conducting a test on the Vault's water supply. He had run one of his weekly checkups to make sure that the Vault's water was not being contaminated by any outside source of radiation or bacteria. He was just putting away all of his gear when he heard some scuffling and the sound of laughter coming from the hallway outside of the lab.

Edd tensed up at first but then sighed happily knowing who it was and quickly walked to the door and opened it to see his two friends playfully wrestling on the floor outside. Eddy had Ed in a headlock and was giving him a noogie when he looked up and saw Edd smiling at their antics.

"Hiya Double-D!" Ed shouted. Ed easily broke out of Eddy's headlock, sending him flying against one of the nearby walls and then proceeded to grab his friend and squeeze the life out of him much like what he did earlier.

"Ed! Please no not again!" Edd pleaded but it was too late Ed had already attacked him with a second bear hug. "Ed, I require oxygen like every other human!" Edd struggled to say as his face turned several different shades of color.

Ed let him go much to Edd's relief who quickly brushed his clothes off before saying, "So fellows, shall we go to the cafeteria for some sustenance?"

Ed began jumping up and down for joy while shouting, "I love gravy! Double-D can we please get some gravy? Please?"

"Ed, shut up! You do this every day before we go and what do you always end up getting?" Eddy said in an agitated voice after he got up from being tossed.

Ed sat there for a moment attempting to ponder Eddy's words before shouting, "Butter toast!" Edd and Eddy both face palmed and shook their heads.

"Ed, will you ever grow a brain?" Eddy asked in his most serious tone he could muster.

Before Ed could answer the question Edd chimed in and said, "Well technically Eddy, Ed already has a brain and is simply lacking in intelligence. Here let me explain-"

But before Edd could finish Ed's stomach began to growl, so he grabbed both of his friends and started racing off towards the cafeteria laughing stupidly the entire time. Edd looked like he was about to throw up and Eddy just looked extremely pissed off.

The Eds soon arrived at the double doors of the cafeteria. Ed stared at them before he quickly dropped his two friends and burst through the doors laughing and then proceeded to begin naming off all of his favorite foods in his normal boisterous and often times, annoying manner.

Eddy quickly got up and brushed himself off, mumbling curses under his breath before picking up Edd who looked like he was about to hurl.

"Idiot." Eddy grumbled before walking into the cafeteria to grab a plate and get in line.

Edd got up and shook his head slightly before joining his friends in the rather spacious cafeteria. It was styled after an old 80's café, complete with booths, tables, a tiled floor, an ice cream bar. It was set up similar to a buffet except it wasn't all you could eat and the food usually was never that great. Edd grabbed a plate and was heading towards the line. He had always been curious as to how much time the builders had put into the construction of this place but his daydream was soon interrupted when he remembered his friend's punishments from earlier.

"Wait! Eddy! You and Ed aren't supposed to be here, remember your punishments?" Edd shouted as he caught up to Eddy and Ed who at this point were standing in line to get their food.

Eddy without even looking back at Edd nonchalantly replied, "Ehh, screw the Overseer and his stupid punishment, I'll get food when I want to get food."

Ed hardly even noticed Edd had said anything since he was way too enthralled with getting his food and was already drooling over it before the food even reached his plate.

Edd before going any further with the current matter at hand glanced around and saw that all of the other kids were congregating at one of the corner booths and looked over at them every so often before turning their heads sharply away from the Eds. Edd was about to say something to Eddy but before he knew it he was up next in line to receive his food. He quickly told the cafeteria lady what he wanted, thanked her, then quickly began walking over to his friends, who were already sitting down and eating. Edd took special care not to spill any of his food on the floor while walking over.

He took a seat next to Ed in the booth and looked around a bit before saying, "Eddy, have you noticed that the other kids are acting rather strangely right now?"

Eddy looked up from his plate and gave Edd a strange look before he turned around in seat and stealthily looked over the top of the booth to spy on the other kids.

After a few moments he turned back around and replied, "No, not any weirder than what they already act. What made you say that?"

"I don't know guys I'm just getting this strange feeling that-" Suddenly and without warning all the kids were surrounding the Ed's table and began questioning them much to their surprise and discomfort.

"What the hell?" Eddy yelled as Kevin grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up.

"So Eddy, what are you and your boyfriends planning to do, huh?" Kevin questioned.

"First, get the fuck out of my face and secondly, like I would ever tell you my plans!" Eddy yelled and then proceeded to kick Kevin in the groin causing Kevin to double over in pain and drop Eddy.

"Plank knew something was up! He's always right, so where are you guys going?" Jonny yelled as he pointed a finger at the shocked Eds.

Jonny hadn't changed too much over the years; in fact it would be easy to say that hadn't at all. He did however grow taller putting him around six' two" and grew out his hair into a small afro. His personality has pretty much stayed the same, he is still quite the loner, gets on people's nerves, and even though there isn't any nature in the Vault Jonny managed to grab a few seeds from the surface before going into the Vault and has actually managed to start growing something. Jonny did however earn some cool points back in high school when he tried out for the football team and had proved to be an excellent running back and because of the training he got a lot stronger and tougher. He still carries around Plank who by now is starting to get a bit worn out but Jonny doesn't care and still talks to him anyways.

"Tell Plank that he can piss off!" Eddy yelled.

"People please, calm down! If you all would get in an orderly line we promise that we will answer all of your questions." Edd said, trying to calm down the raging mob before them.

"Butter toast! Hey guys watch this-" but before Ed could finish his sister Sarah grabbed him by the neck and yanked him out of the booth.

"Ed, just you wait until mom and dad finds out about what you're doing!" Sarah screamed.

"No, baby sister please don't tell mom and dad, spare me!" Ed pleaded, as he got on his knees.

The kids continued to close in on the Eds and things were starting to get tense when suddenly Rolf jumped out from the group and stopped their advancements on the Eds.

"Stop! What are you? Barbarians from the Nether Region? Let the Ed boys have their chance to tell their tale!" Rolf's commanding voice resounded throughout the entire cafeteria, causing several other people to stare, and then return to their meals and previous conversations.

Rolf had changed both physically and mentally over the years. Rolf had always been the farmer boy who was full of random wisdom and extremely bizarre customs. And while he is still full of wisdom from his Old Country and still has strange customs, he lost his farm and animals. Rolf was heartbroken after losing all that he and his family had worked for but he was able to press on and found that he was good at lots of things other than agricultural work. His intelligence concerning technology has increased by a lot and he currently works as an engineer in the Vault. He found that he could not only fix farming equipment but machinery as well. Besides mental changes, he has also gotten a lot stronger, making him the strongest out of the bunch. He also grew out his blue hair which now comes to his shoulders and grew a rough blue beard to go with it. He also grew a bit taller but only a few inches so he was still the tallest as well at six' eight". Rolf has actually learned to respect and tolerates the Eds more than most of the other kids and at times has saved them from a pummeling but if angered by them he doesn't have a problem with beating them senseless.

The kids slowly backed away from the Eds, not wanting to upset Rolf any further. "Now Ed boys, please tell Rolf and the rest of these animals your tale."

Eddy pushed Edd up to the front of the group, making the latter begin to sweat and shake a bit. Edd rubbed his arm a bit out of nervousness and looked around before facing his peers.

"Ehh, well, you see, Eddy came to me yesterday with the idea of escaping from the Vault to the outside world. I of course, told him that it was way too risky but he kept on about it until I finally gave in and decided to help both he and Ed come up with a plan to escape. I can assure you that I have no desire to return to the surface, I only am helping my friends out." Edd concluded his case and rejoined his comrades.

Eddy glared at Edd and Ed sat there quietly with a scared look, since he was still afraid of what his sister was planning to do to him when they got home.

"A fine tale that was! Rolf respects the Ed boy's decision to return to the surface and actually Rolf was wondering if you wouldn't mind if the Son of a Shepherd came along as well? Rolf longs for a life outside of this metal box of boredom. Rolf is a farmer and will always be a farmer!" Rolf said with a triumphant smile. Rolf had all along been waiting for an opportunity such as this to arise. "Rolf longs for the outdoors and to work on a farm once more!"

"That plans sounds awesome! Can Plank and I tag along too; we've been itching for some action?" Jonny exclaimed. Jonny missed nature and at times was depressed about the fact that he may never be able to climb a tree again. This however may give him a chance to do so again, granted that trees still exist…

"Okay, well if you dudes are leaving someone responsible is going to have to come along and make sure you guys take care of yourselves." Nazz said with her hands on her hips. Nazz was starting to grow tired of men drooling over her constantly and felt cramp inside the Vault. "_I have a life to live and I plan on living it to the fullest and this may be the only chance I got. Plus they will need my help out there, not sure how well a group of men will survive out there without some female intellect."_

"If Nazz is going then I want to come too!" Sarah chirped. Sarah at first was angry as could be when she heard about this but work gave her time to really think about it. _"Maybe Ed isn't as dumb as I thought he was? No, that's crazy he's still an idiot but this could give me a chance to go back home to Peach Creek and see if anything is even left."_

"Whoa, who the hell said that everyone could come? This is Ed and mine's plan not yours!" Eddy yelled. He began to turn red out of anger and had his fists clenched by his side.

"Face it dorks, we don't want to stay down here either! So I'm coming too. I mean who wants to live and die in this hellhole anyways?" Kevin added. Normally a kick to the groin from anyone would have set Kevin off on them but this time was different. He needed to escape this Vault, his dad, his past. Outside of this Vault he could start over his life and become something. That and if he wanted too he could beat the hell out of Eddy all that he wanted without punishment. That part appealed to him the most. _"Eddy will pay for that low blow; I'll make sure of it…"_

Ed's attitude had begun to change as he slowly started to realize that everyone was about to embark on the same adventure, including his sister Sarah.

"Yay, we're going on an adventure!" Ed yelled as he ran around in circles in the cafeteria, continuing to yell out adventure until Eddy grabbed him and made him shut up.

Jimmy had all the while been getting sicker and sicker upon hearing all of his friends one by one commit to going on this insane adventure into the Wasteland.

"Guys… I don't think we should be doing this!" Jimmy stammered.

"I would have to agree with Jimmy on this one. This is way too dangerous and has to be breaking most, if not all of the Vault's rules!" Edd argued.

Eddy turned to Edd and said "Come on sock-head, bone up and be a man for once!"

Sarah also turned to her friend Jimmy and said "Come on Jimmy it will be fun!" She said with a smile.

Jimmy stood there and stuttered a bit before finally managing to say, "Okay, I guess I'll go…"

Everyone but Edd cheered, who stood there tapping his foot in frustration. Everyone turned all of their eyes on Edd who continued to keep a stern look on his face.

Slowly everyone began to chant "Double-D! Double-D! Double-D!" Their chanting grew louder and louder before it was finally broken by Edd.

"Alright! I guess I will go, just please stop chanting, it's giving me a headache." Edd exclaimed and then started to rub his temples.

"Very well then, it would seem that we have all come to agreement to go on this endeavor of leaving Vault 117 and starting anew in the Wastelands above!" Rolf announced quietly.

The kids gave out a cheer besides Edd and Jimmy and all huddled together to discuss their plans on how to escape. However, little did they realize, the Kanker Sisters had been sitting only a few booths away and had heard the entire thing.


	4. Chapter 3: Busted

**Chapter 3: Busted**

The Eds and company continued to discuss their plans while the Kankers listened intently to every word of their conversation. All three of them showed signs of sadness upon hearing the news, especially since they were probably not going to be informed; typical they were never included in everyone else's reindeer games. Lee was mad as could be while tears could be seen in both May and Marie's eyes. All three of the Kankers had shown huge improvements in their attitudes and behavior prior to entering the Vault. They slowly started to come around and tried to make friends with the other children but with only minimal success. Marie made the most improvement and at times was invited to hang out with Nazz, Kevin, and Rolf.

"It's not fair!" Lee exclaimed. She hit her fists on the table, attracting attention from some of the other vault dwellers. Lee's scowl was enough to make them resume their old conversations or to continue eating their dinner in silence.

Lee's main physical change was that she finally decided to straighten her red hair which now showed off her hazel eyes. She was slightly more attractive but not enough for Eddy to want to have anything to do with her. She had also changed in the fact that she and her sisters had given up on trying to chase the Eds and rather, tried to make friends with them. However, it didn't work quite as well as they had hoped, even though they did gain some respect among their peers in the process. Lee still loves Eddy even though he is mean to her; because she knows deep down he's a good guy. Lee, while gaining some respect, is still hated by the majority of the kids and tolerated by others. She tries to be nice but she can still be temperamental and destructive at times when she gets angry. It is because of this that she became such a good street fighter and why none of the guys would dare arouse her anger.

"Don't worry Lee; I'm sure they'll tell us the plan." Marie said, trying to comfort her sister, even though deep down she knew they wouldn't tell them.

Marie had changed physically since now she has a belly button piercing; several ear piercings, filled out more, and she let her blue hair grow down to the middle of her back. She was also the first out of the trio to give up on chasing around the Eds. It was a year before her sisters stopped chasing the Eds that she decided to try and win over Edd in a more normal manner, rather than to force him to like her. While she did not have a lot of success she did gain respect among not only the Eds but also the rest of the kids. For a time she did cut herself when she realized that Edd didn't like her and probably never would. She was able to overcome her problems though. She still longs for Edd's love but sticks to just trying to become his friend first. She is arguable the most mature among her sisters and also she picked up playing the acoustic guitar which has not only helped her but the others as well when days in the Vault become monotonous.

"Why don't they like us?" May asked, then started to bawl and hid her face in shame.

May had definitely matured the least since she is the youngest out of the bunch. She still has buck teeth and long blonde hair, and her looks haven't changed much either. May and Marie have bonded a lot as well, since Lee tended to be mean, bossy, and a pain to be around at times. May also has a higher standing among her peers over Lee, most of the thanks however go to Marie since she was the one who showed that she wasn't too bad after all (not to say Marie didn't try to help Lee but had little luck). She still loves Ed even though he is still deathly afraid of girls but has given up on chasing him and has decided to just wait for him to talk to her. One skill that May has picked up over the last couple of years is the art of picking locks. After years of practice there isn't a lock out there that she can't pick.

"I'm going over there right now to give them a piece of my mind!" Lee yelled as she started to get up. Marie grabbed her sister by the wrist and pulled her back down before she caused something that they would later regret.

"Lee, don't be stupid! If we intervene now then they will all hate us and not even think of telling us. Let's just sit on the sidelines for now and wait it out." Marie explained, while casually looking back to see what the group of kids were up to. The group was still in a football huddle and it would seem that Eddy had taken complete control of the operation.

"Alright everyone so this is the plan, we will all meet up here during our lunch break since most everyone else, including most of the security will be on break as well. We'll all eat as fast as we can and then just walk out and BAM! We're home free baby!" Eddy was almost drooling with excitement after telling the plan.

Edd was the first to say something. "Well it's a start at least, except how do we open up the Vault door?"

"Uhh, well… we'll cross that bridge when we get to it! So anyways everyone we need to pack up anything and everything that we can. So try to get food, extra clothes, weapons, whatever you can scrounge up. We're going to need it all."

"Wait a second, so you're telling me that you don't even know how to open up the Vault door? And what if we come across some security forces, what then douche?" Kevin questioned.

"Like I said we just go with it! Trust me guy everything will work out I just know it!" Eddy said.

"I could check to see if my parents have any weapons around the house since they're both security guards. At least then we'll have some protection" Nazz offered.

"Rolf shall pack his trusty pitchfork!"

Eddy greedily rubbed his hands together then said, "Good… good! See guys we'll be alright! Before you know it we'll be outside the Vault enjoying life!"

"Come on Jimmy, let's go to my house and find some stuff!" Sarah said as she grabbed Jimmy's hand and proceeded to drag him to her house.

"Hey Sarah, I'll go to my house first and then do you mind if I meet up with the two of you later?" Nazz said.

"Sure, that would be great!" Sarah replied.

"Come on Plank! We have a lot of work to do and don't be slacking on me when we have to pack, alright buddy?" Jonny said as he walked off, still continuing his conversation with his wooden friend.

Once most of the other had cleared out Edd confronted Eddy about the apparent flaws in his plan. "Eddy you can't expect the other to go through with this without proper planning. How about we go back to your place and discuss this some more and then give the others the revised plan?" Edd suggested.

"Well, sure I guess. I mean I thought it was a pretty good plan but whatever." Eddy said.

"Yay! Slumber party!" Ed exclaimed.

"Jeez… Come on guys let's get out of here." Eddy said and then started making his way towards the exit.

The Kankers sisters immediately dashed out of the cafeteria so they could catch the Eds later to confront them about the plan. They made sure that they got out first and waited at the end of the hallway leading to Eddy's house. They weren't going to be left behind to rot here, no fucking way!

The Eds were walking down the hallway talking more about the plan when Eddy looked up and saw all three of the Kankers hanging out near his house. His blood began to boil immediately.

"What the hell?" Eddy yelled as he got into a fighting stance.

Ed and Edd came to a complete stop and stood behind Eddy, not wanting to get involved.

"Listen twerp we're not here to hurt you, we just want to ask you guys a few questions alright." Lee said, slightly annoyed by Eddy's aggressive behavior.

"Fine! What do you want then?" Eddy said, as he relaxed out of his fighting stance and folded his arms across his chest while tapping his foot impatiently.

"Well, we overheard you and everyone else at dinner tonight about your little plan on escaping the Vault. We want in, but before you throw a fit think about it, you could use some extra help out there, as well as the skills that we have to offer. Otherwise, the Overseer might just catch a whiff of your plan. So, do we have a deal?" Lee finished her statement and reached out her hand waiting for Eddy to either accept or deny the deal.

Eddy sat there for a moment eyeing Lee's extended hand while keeping his own still folded across his chest.

"You know Eddy, she does have a point. Remember, there's strength in numbers." Edd added.

Ed was still cowering behind Edd and started to shake even harder after May smiled and waved at him.

Marie stood next to Lee thinking, _"Good job Double-D! If there's anyone who can get through Eddy's thick skull it would be you!"_

Finally after several tense seconds of thinking, Eddy shook Lee's hand and begrudgingly said, "Fine, alright, you three can tag along with us. But if you tell anyone else about this plan I'll kill you myself!"

"I'd like to see you try shorty." Lee said then started to laugh.

* * *

Unbeknownst to the group they had unwittingly stopped in a hallway that had a hidden security camera that was catching every word of their conversation. The guard on duty sat there in amazement at what he was hearing and was soon calling in the Overseer and the Chief of Security into the room to see what was happening. The Overseer and Chief sat there in silence as they listened in on what the kids were saying.

The Overseer stood up straight and said, "Tomorrow we will round up all of the teenagers from Peach Creek and interrogate each and every one of them about this little plan of theirs. Chief, get the security team ready because I want you to hit them early in the morning before they get up for work."

The Chief saluted then said, "Sir Yes sir! I'll go let them know now sir!"

The Chief then left the security room leaving the guard and Overseer there to continue to listen.

* * *

Lee and her sisters were smiling from ear to ear, "You made the right choice twerp! Come on girls, we have stuff to pack!"

And with that the Kankers left leaving an annoyed Eddy, relieved Ed, and elated Edd standing there.

"Eddy, you really did make the right choice, even though you really didn't have a choice, but still." Edd said as he put a comforting hand on Eddy's shoulder.

"Well as long as they pull their own weight and don't bother me then I'm fine." Eddy said as he threw off Edd's hand and proceeded to open the door to his house. After fumbling with the lock for a second Eddy opened up the door and the three boys entered into the house. Eddy's house was just about the same as any other Vault house except that there was an old photo of Eddy, his brothers, his mom, and his dad. They continued through Eddy's small house and entered his room, which was slightly like his old room in that he was able to salvage his disco ball, which was proudly hanging from his ceiling as well as a few other items that would probably be labeled as contraband by the Vault police.

"Eddy, why are we at your house instead of our own separate abodes packing our own gear?" Edd asked as Eddy threw him a duffle bag.

"Because, Ed doesn't have much stuff to begin with that's worth anything and all of your important stuff is at your workplace." Eddy said.

"Hey! I have a heart!" Ed said in retaliation.

"Ed, shut up and start packing! Same goes for you sock-head!" Eddy commanded.

The three Eds continued to dump all of Eddy's worldly possessions into the duffle bag until it was so full that even Ed had a hard time forcing it to zip up.

Edd slowly slid down Eddy's wall and landed with a sigh of relief, "Eddy, why did you have us pack your old disco ball and records if there will be no way to use them anyways?"

"I figure that they may be worth something on the outside and because they're cool, duh!"

"Hey Eddy, do you think there will slime covered mutants running around on the surface like in Grognak the Barbarian?" Ed asked with a smile, while jumping up and down.

"Uhh… Ed, maybe you should take up a different hobby that doesn't involve reading." Eddy replied before plopping onto his bed. "Well boys, tomorrow we become free men, no more Overseers, no more rules, just the wide open spaces of the Earth. It's going to be great!"

"I hope that you're right Eddy." Edd said as he relaxed against Eddy's wall.

"Oh boy! I sure hope that there are mutants and monsters for Ed to crush!" Ed yelled and then started to act like he was stabbing a monster.

"Yeah Ed, you take care of all of the monsters while Double-D and I will take care of the rest." Eddy said as he closed his eyes and settled in under his covers.

Pretty soon the three Eds were fast asleep and all the while were completely unaware that tomorrow would undoubtedly be the worst days of their young lives, so far.

* * *

Eddy woke with a start after he heard loud banging on his front door. His two friends were already up and were just as confused. Eddy's mom was yelling something when suddenly the door forced open when one of the guards was able to override the lock system. Four security guards charged in and began searching for Eddy and his friends. They spotted Eddy and his friends in his room and made their way towards them.

Eddy quickly jumped up and locked his door before the guard could break in.

"What the hell is going on?" Eddy yelled. Edd was hiding behind Ed who was just as scared.

"Open up!" The guards were yelling through Eddy's door as they started to beat it down.

"Guys, don't just stand there, help me out!" Eddy yelled desperately as he pushed himself against his door to try and keep the guards out.

Edd and Ed snapped out of their trance and ran over to help their friend. The guards mercilessly beat on the door while the three Eds fought to hold them back.

"Eddy! I'm not sure how much longer this door can hold out for! Edd yelled as he strained with all his might to push back.

"Just keep pushing back! Do not let them in!" Eddy ordered.

"Eddy! I can't hold for much longer!" Ed groaned.

"Damn it Ed, you hold that door until I tell you to stop!" Eddy ordered while struggling himself to keep pushing back.

Suddenly, the door started to get pushed open. Before too much longer the guards had broken through and were proceeding to apprehend the Eds. One of the guards quickly grabbed Edd and was able to hand cuff him easily.

"Guys! Help me!" Edd yelled as he was dragged away.

"Shit! No, Double-D!" Eddy yelled as he watched his friend get dragged away.

Eddy charged one of the guards and tackled him to the ground. Eddy ripped the guard's helmet off and started to punch him in the face. The other guards quickly pulled out their police batons. One went to help the other guard that Eddy was attacking while the other went to get Ed. The one who went after Eddy quickly bashed Eddy in the head causing him to fall off of the guard and grab his head in agony. The guard who Eddy had just beaten up got up and kicked him (Eddy) in the stomach before cuffing him and leading him out of the house.

Eddy's vision was slightly blurry from the blow but he was able to make out his mother who was sitting on the couch crying while another guard tried to assure her that everything would be okay. Eddy was led down the many halls and corridors until he reached the basement of the Vault. The guard led him into a white, well lit room where Eddy saw the rest of the kids sitting there. Kevin had a black eye and a bloody lip, Rolf had several bruises and cuts on his arms and one cut on his face, Jimmy, Sarah, and May were all crying but unharmed, Edd was sitting in the corner silent as well as Marie, Jonny was trying to calm Plank down, Nazz was trying to comfort Sarah, and Lee was spouting off curses at the guard who was outside of the cell even though he couldn't hear her through the sound proof glass. The guard threw Eddy into the room and quickly shut the door behind him.

Not a minute later, two more guards entered the room escorting Ed who had bruises on his face and arms and had a black eye forming. The two guards weren't fairing much better. One had a most likely broken nose, a black eye, and multiple bruises on his face. The other was limping, had a bloody lip and nose and multiple bruises and cuts on his arms and face.

"This one was a real bitch to take down but we got him in the end!" one of the hurt guards said angrily.

The guard on watch looked him over then said, "Yeah, I can tell. Go get yourself cleaned up, I can handle these brats."

The two injured guards dropped Ed off in the cell then left, leaving only one guard down there on watch.

The teenagers sat around in the cell. Jimmy, Sarah, and May had calmed down somewhat as well as Plank according to Jonny. Rolf, Kevin, Eddy, Ed, and Edd all gathered together in a circle to discuss a plan of action.

"So guys, what do you think they are planning to do to us?" Kevin asked.

"I don't know but I'm sure it won't be good." Eddy replied.

"Rolf is still confused as to how the "man" found out about our plan of escape."

"Well, there are cameras in some of the halls so they could have heard that way or maybe at dinner someone overheard us. Who knows?" Edd said.

"Well, however they found out we need to come up with a plan on how to escape this cell and the Vault. I am not spending the rest of my life in here!" Eddy exclaimed.

"Yeah, same here man, but how the hell are we supposed to get out of here if the doors locked?" Kevin asked.

"I could unlock it, if I had something to unlock it with, like a bobby pin or paperclip." May offered.

Eddy looked around the room then said, "Well, you heard her. So, anyone have a bobby pin or paperclip on them?"

Everyone searched themselves but to no avail.

"Damn! There has got to be another way!" Kevin yelled, as he beat his fists against the wall.

Just when all hope was slipping away into the darkness of the Vault's basement, blood began to violently spew from the guard's neck. He grasped at his wound and started to writhe on the floor in pain as he slowly choked to death on his own blood. He soon became calm and still. His hand slowly fell from his neck and fell into the pool of blood that had started to surround him. All of them were scared and in shock at what they had just seen. Suddenly, a figure stepped out of the shadows and into the light. It was Edd's father. He quickly searched the guard and found his set of keys. He fumbled around with the keys trying to find the right one until the door made a clicking sound and slid open. They were now that much closer to freedom.


	5. Chapter 4: Adios Vault, Hello Wasteland!

**Chapter 4: Adios Vault 117, Hello Wasteland!**

Everyone was stunned at what they just saw. Not only had they just seen their first, real, violent death but it was Edd's dad who had killed the guard. They all stared wide-eyed at the body for what felt like an eternity, until they were dragged out of their dream-like existence at the sound of Edd's father's voice.

"What are you guys waiting for, the end of the world? Come on let's get moving!" Edd's dad said as he took the lead, with his 10mm Pistol in hand and at the ready.

Everyone else simply followed their rescuer up the basement stairs and into the light of the Vault hallway. Red security lights were flashing and there was a male voice on the intercom saying, "Citizens of Vault 117, do not be alarmed. There has simply been a minor breach and I can assure you all that our Vault Security will take care of the problem as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience and understanding in this stressful situation."

"Uhh, so, what do we do now?" Eddy asked.

The others all began to ask the same question while Edd's father silently motioned them to follow him and sprinted off down the hall in a crouched run. They did as he had asked them and followed his lead in the same manner.

Eddy and Edd were next to each other as they ran down the hall. "So sock head, do you think your dad will be able to get us out of here?" Eddy asked.

"I sure hope so, now that we're basically criminals and aren't welcome here anymore." Edd replied.

"Yeah man, your dad better have a good plan on getting us past all of the security!" Kevin interrupted.

Eddy got an annoyed look on his face and before he could say something the sound of gunfire filled the air.

"Holy shit! What's happening?" Eddy yelled as he put his arms over his head.

Three security guards were shooting at them with 10mm Pistols but unbeknownst to the group they had orders to wound not kill.

"Halt!" one of the guards yelled as he fired more shots at them.

Luckily most of the shots hit the walls around the group. Unfortunately, one found its mark.

"Ahhh! Bitch! Son of a bitch!" Kevin yelled as the metal slug jerked into his arm.

He grabbed his arm in pain as blood started to trickle down the arm of his Vault jumpsuit, staining it dark red.

Edd's father fired back and with great accuracy he was able to shoot two guards in the head, killing them instantly and wounded the other in the arm. The remaining guards retreated down the hallway, still firing his weapon blindly. Edd's dad ran up to the dead guards and retrieved their weapons.

"Yo, Kev, you okay man?" Eddy yelled as he ran to Kevin to check on him.

"No, Kevin!" Nazz screamed as she ran to his side.

Everyone was crowding around the injured Kevin until they were all pushed out of the way by Rolf.

"Get out of Rolf's way! Let Rolf take a look at the injured pack member!" Rolf examined Kevin's arm which was still rather tender.

"Damn it dude! This thing still hurts like hell!" Kevin yelled in pain.

Rolf continued his examination until he sat up and announced, "Kevin shall be fine, the metal projectile went through his arm! A bandage! Rolf requires a bandage!"

Edd's father ran up to the group after he had made sure that there were no more guards sight.

"Sorry kid, we don't have any bandages, but here use this for now." Edd's dad pulled out a small knife and cut off part of the cloth from his suit to be used as a bandage instead.

Rolf took the cloth and wrapped it around Kevin's wound tightly, "Oh and here, take these!" Edd's dad handed Rolf and Eddy both a 10mm Pistol.

"Sweet!" Eddy exclaimed, admiring his new weapon.

"Ahha, Rolf shall use this boom cannon to avenge Kevin boy's injury!"

Kevin was still sitting against the wall with pain written all over his face.

Edd walked over to him and asked "You going to be okay Kevin? Do you need any assistance?"

Kevin slowly got up and replied, "Nah, I'll be fine. Let's just get the hell out of this Vault before one of us end up getting killed."

"Sounds like a plan! Now come on everyone follow me, we need to make it to the Vault door and meet Nazz's parents before the rest of the security team does!" Edd's dad said before sprinting off down the hallway.

"My parents are in on this too?" Nazz was completely confused and she looked as if she were about to cry. She didn't want her parents to get hurt or worse. She was close to both of them and the thought of them even getting hurt brought a tear to her eye.

Sarah came up and put a caring hand on her shoulder and said, "Don't worry Nazz; I'm sure they'll be fine!"

Jimmy did the same and said, "Yeah, your parents are both really good shots too!"

The three stood there for a moment before they ran to catch up with the others who had already covered a good distance.

The group continued to run in silence until Ed stopped and yelled, "Wait! What about our stuff?"

This caused everyone else to stop, including Edd's dad. They were stopped at a crossroad. One way led them towards the Vault door and their freedom. The other corridor led towards the cafeteria and residential part of the Vault where their survival gear was.

"Yeah, shit, you're right Ed! How the hell are we supposed to survive out in the Wasteland without our supplies?" Eddy yelled.

"Dad, if the plan is for us to survive out in the Wasteland we will need provisions." Edd added.

"Yeah, and we're going to need weapons too!" Kevin said.

"Plank says that we could always raid the cafeteria and armory for supplies." Jonny chimed in.

"Rolf is still confused as to how this piece of wood can talk!"

Edd's dad sat there for a moment, while the kids continued to talk about Plank's mental capabilities.

"Alright, you guys are right. Listen up! We'll hit the cafeteria first, grab what you can and then get the hell out. Afterwards, we can go to the armory, though I fear that the majority of the weapons will be gone anyways."

"Why don't we split up into two groups so we cover more ground?" Marie suggested.

Edd's dad contemplated her suggestion for a moment before replying, "Alright, Eddy, Marie, Ed, and Jimmy, you four go raid the cafeteria and I'll take the rest to the armory.

"Sounds good to me, but hey, if there are any extra guns grab some extra for us!" Eddy asked.

"Don't worry dork, I'll make sure to grab an extra weapon for me!" Kevin added as he started to laugh, causing Eddy to scowl at him.

"Yeah, well depends if there are even any guns there, but sure." Edd's dad replied before he took the rest of the team with him down the hall.

* * *

Eddy and his team watched as the rest of their friends disappeared down the corridor leading towards the armory and Vault door.

"Okay boys and girl, listen up! We're going to sprint like hell towards the cafeteria and hope that we don't run into any guards! Then we gather up some food and shit and make our way back to the door! Got it?"

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement with the plan and then as Eddy had said sprinted down the hallway, leaving Eddy behind.

"Hey, what the hell guys? Wait for me!" Eddy yelled as he ran to catch up with the others.

The red lights and warning sirens were still going off, much to the annoyance of the group but since it was a security alert there was no one to be seen on their trek to the cafeteria.

"It's so weird not seeing anyone in the halls." Marie commented.

"Yeah, and the only people who are in the halls are shooting at you." Eddy added.

"I sure hope that they have some gravy and maybe some buttered toast too!" Ed exclaimed.

"Ed! Shut up! We don't want to attract any attention to ourselves!" Eddy berated.

They continued to move quickly but soon slowed their pace to a fast walk as they approached the cafeteria doors. Eddy took point and looked around before slowly poking his head inside of the cafeteria. He looked around and saw no one, so he signaled for everyone to follow him in.

They all rushed in and began looking in cabinets to find food or any other useful items.

"Guys, do you think they will have any gravy?" Ed asked.

"Ed! Get over the damn gravy already!" Eddy yelled.

"Eww Ed, why do you like gravy so much?" Jimmy asked with a disgusted look on his face.

"It's not disgusting! It's a way of life Jimmy!" Ed yelled before returning to search for gravy.

Marie was searching through a drawer when she stumbled upon a rather sharp looking, serrated, kitchen knife. Marie picked it up and examined it before asking

"Hey, you guys think this would be a decent weapon?"

Eddy looked up with an armful of boxed foods. "Yeah, that thing looks pretty badass to me."

Marie nodded in approval of her new weapon and tucked it into her belt for safe keeping.

"Hey, someone find a box or something so we can carry this stuff easier!" Eddy ordered.

Ed randomly popped up from behind a counter with a box on his head and exclaimed, "Found it!"

"That's convenient." Eddy said, before taking the box off of Ed's head.

"Who turned on the lights?" Ed asked stupidly.

"I did, now keep working! Idiot…" Eddy said.

"Eddy, we should probably get moving before any people or guards notice us." Marie suggested.

"Alright fine, let's go kids!" Eddy yelled.

Ed grabbed the box of food and started to run out the door while laughing stupidly.

"Ed! Shut up you idiot before you alert-" But before Eddy could finish he saw two guards with police batons were tearing down the halls at them.

"Ahhh shit! Run for it guys!" Eddy yelled.

"What are you talking about dude? You have a gun, so use it!" Marie yelled, with her serrated blade at the ready.

Eddy looked down at the gun tucked away in his belt "Oh, yeah you're right!

Eddy whipped out his 10mm Pistol and fired several shots at the oncoming guards. One of the bullets hit a guard in the arm causing him to drop his police baton while the others missed and hit the walls.

"Damn Eddy, you suck!" Marie teased before the other guard swung at her with his baton.

Marie dodged the attack and slashed at him with her knife. The guard was barely able to recover and block the attack, giving Marie the edge. She quickly pulled her knife back from her previous attack and then thrust it into the guard's chest. She wrenched the knife out of him causing the security guard let out a cry of pain before doubling over on the floor. His body soon went limp and a pool of blood began to form around him.

Marie felt little remorse for what she did, most men were pigs anyways. Especially the men her mom spent her time with. His death meant nothing to her but what would the others think knowing that she had killed a man? Would they view her differently? Would all of that hard work to gain some acceptance come to a complete end? She hoped not.

"Holy shit…" was all Eddy could utter at what he just saw.

The other guard was still holding his arm in pain and watched as Marie slowly approached him. He started to back away from her in fear of what he had just seen her do to the other guard. He went to call out for help but was unable to as his brain was turned to soup from a shot to the head from Eddy's pistol. Marie looked back at Eddy who was slowly lowering his weapon.

"I figured that ending his life more quickly would be better, besides we need to get moving before more show up. Come on guys let's get moving!" Eddy ordered. Eddy may have seemed cool and collected on the outside but the emotions were already kicking in. He had just killed a man and not just any man but a security guard. The thought sickened him but he figured that it was in self-defense and the only option.

Ed, before leaving, ran over and picked up both of the police batons and sheathed them both in his belt. He caught back up with the group, which was only a few yards ahead and handed his extra baton to Jimmy.

"Here you go Jimmy! Use it if any bad guys show up!" Ed said happily as he handed over the weapon.

"Uhh… thanks Ed." Jimmy said timidly as he took the weapon, looking at it cautiously. They all began to sprint down the halls leading towards the housing section of the Vault. They each split up and gathered up the already packed supplies from their respective houses as well as their friend's houses. They gathered their supplies in peace and met up laden with goods.

"Okay guys let's make our way back to our friends then shall we." Eddy said. They all nodded and began to move out. When the group finally made it back at the divided hallway they waited a bit to catch their breath before proceeding down the other hallway which would lead them to their friends, who hopefully, were still alive.

* * *

Edd's dad took point, followed by Rolf. So far they hadn't come across any guards, though they knew once they got to the armory and the Vault door, that's when the real fighting would happen.

"These stupid lights are giving me a headache man!" Kevin complained as he shielded his eyes with his good arm.

"Well unfortunately they won't be shutting off anytime soon, so you're going to have to deal with them for just a bit longer. But don't worry we'll be out of here soon." Edd's dad reassured.

They continued at their fast walk pace and began to turn around a corner but there was a guard who was whistling softly to himself, not noticing the group sneaking up on him. Edd's dad motioned everyone to stop moving and crouch. Rolf walked up beside him where they quietly discussed their plan of action.

"Alright, we're only about a hundred yards from the armory so any shots will be easily heard if there are other guards close by." Edd's dad whispered.

"Rolf can take him out quietly." Rolf said.

But before getting the green light he slowly walked up on the unsuspecting guard, grabbed him by the neck, and quickly broke it. There was a sickening crack and the guard immediately went limp. Rolf slowly lowered the guard's body to the floor and then relieved him of his sidearm and any extra ammo that he had on his person. It was nothing, Rolf had done it a hundred times before to an animal but then again something felt different about it. It felt almost wrong to have killed the man in such a manner. Rolf began to think of whether or not the man had a family and who would miss him now that he would be gone. Rolf quickly forced the thoughts out of his mind and returned to the group where he handed over the extra weapon and ammo to Edd's dad. Edd's dad then handed the 10mm Pistol to his son and divided the ammo amongst the three of them.

"Okay, good job kid, now listen up everyone the armory is not too far ahead so here's the plan. Rolf, Eddward, and I will move in and secure the armory, then once we give the green light the rest of you will move in and gather up any extra weapons and ammo. Got it?"

"Well, what if some guards sneak up on us while we are waiting for you guys?" Jonny asked.

"We can only hope that none of them will have guns but if that does happen then make a run for the armory." Edd's dad replied.

Once everyone agreed to the plan they all took their positions. Edd, his dad, and Rolf began to move in on the armory while the rest slowly followed them for part of the way until they were ordered to stop. They were now located in a long hallway that ended with a turn which led to the armory. There was only one way that any guards could sneak up on them, so May and Jonny kept watch while the rest sat against the wall to rest.

Meanwhile, Edd, his dad, and Rolf continued moving in on the armory. There was one guard at the door who saw them approaching. Before he could use the intercom on the door to warn his comrades, he was silenced by a shot to the head from Edd's dad. Immediately, the group charged down the hallway and stopped right outside of the door. Rolf grabbed the fallen man's baton, while Edd's dad used his security card to gain access to the armory. The scanner acknowledged his card and the panel turned from red to green, signaling that the door was now unlocked. All three of them nodded before Edd's dad threw open the door and followed it up with a battle cry. Luckily, none of the guards inside were prepared for the attack.

There were seven guards in the room. Three were sitting down playing cards at a table, two were standing and conversing with each other, while the other two relaxing against the one of the walls. Edd's dad fired off several shots at the guards playing cards, each meeting their mark. One guard was hit in the head, causing him to slump in his chair, another was hit in the shoulder, and another was hit in the neck. The man hit in the neck grabbed his neck before he fell out of his chair and started to writhe on the floor in pain. Rolf and Edd followed up and unleashed their own barrage of lead. Most of Rolf's shots hit their targets, while all of Edd's simple hit the wall and missed completely.

Within seconds the room was completely silent, except for the labored breathing of the victorious trio. All of the guards were dead, most with shots to the chest and head region. Blood was already pooling around the guards and the walls were splattered with blood from where shots had gone through someone's head.

"Son, go get the others." Edd's dad said quickly.

Edd obeyed and ran out of the room back to the other group. In the short amount time Edd's mind was going berserk over what he had just seen. _"I… I can't believe it, we're all slowly becoming murderers!"_Edd hadn't actually killed anyone yet but he knew that in this new world, it was only a matter of time before he too would be forced to take a life. That was something Edd hoped he would have to face later on and also hoped that he had good reason for doing so.

The others were still sitting down when they saw Edd approach. He was breathing heavily and sweat was pouring from his face.

"Everyone, it's time to move!" Edd said quickly.

Everybody obeyed and got up quickly. They followed Edd back to the armory where, they too were stunned at the grisly scene. Rolf was busy looting a guard's body while Edd's dad was placing all of the extra weapons and ammo on the card table.

Edd's dad looked up and said, "Okay, everyone come over and grab a 10mm Pistol and ammo or a police baton."

The unarmed group walked over and surveyed the cache of weapons before them.

There were four 10mm Pistols, each with two magazines, and four police batons. Kevin, and Lee took both a pistol and police baton, Nazz and Sarah both took pistols, while May and Jonny simply took police batons.

Once everyone was armed with their weapon(s) of choice, they all proceeded out of the armory and back into the hallway.

"Okay, well hopefully the other guys will make it here soon-"

Edd's dad was cut off when Eddy's all too familiar voice filled the hallway.

"Come on guys and girl, we're almost there!" The food group stopped at the end of the hallway and saw their comrades waiting for them.

"Aww, Eddy we missed the party!" Ed complained.

"Obviously!" Eddy replied angrily before walking down the hallway towards his friends.

"So, did you guys leave us anything?" Eddy asked.

"Sorry guys, we've already handed everything out." Edd apologized.

"That's okay; we found some weapons of our own anyways!" Marie said while showing off her new knife, which was still stained with fresh blood.

"So, you guys run into any trouble?" Kevin asked.

"Not too much, just a few guards but we took care of them." Eddy replied, the thoughts and images returned again but he fought them off.

"Oh boy but did we hit the jackpot or what guys?" Ed yelled as he showed the group all of the food they had gathered.

"Wow! That should last us for quite a while!" Edd exclaimed.

All the kids crowded around the box of food while Edd's dad sat there patiently.

"Listen everyone; we don't have much time so we need to keep moving!" Edd's dad said impatiently.

Everyone agreed and after gathering up their gear they set out towards the Vault door. The way there was easy since the majority of the guards were dead or more than likely preparing for their final stand at the door.

"You know, I haven't seen or heard the Overseer for quite some time. Where do think he is?" Nazz asked.

"He's most likely at the Vault door with the rest of the guards." Edd's dad answered.

"Well, when I get my hands on him he'll wish he never fucked with me!" Eddy promised.

"What about our parents though, what will happen to them?" Jonny asked concerned.

"Don't worry about them; they're all safe at home." Edd's dad reassured.

The group soon reached the last obstacle stopping them from escaping, the Vault exit. They walked down a metal hallway and at the end they spotted two people in security uniforms. They were guarding a metal door that lead to the main Vault door. They looked up at the group and signaled them over. Edd's dad told everyone to stay put. He ran down and started to converse with them and after a minute he motioned for the rest of the group to come. They all did as they were told and found that the two guards were actually Nazz's parents.

"Mom! Dad! You're alive!" Nazz yelled as she ran up and embraced both of her parents.

"Yes dear, of course we're still alive!" Nazz's mom said as she hugged her daughter.

"Yeah honey, we were afraid that something happened to you but it would appear that you can handle yourself!" Nazz's dad added.

"Well, I couldn't have done it without Mr. Williams help!" Nazz said happily.

"No thanks are necessary, all that matters now is getting you kids out of here. So, what's the news on the other side of this door?" Edd's dad asked.

"Well, there are only eight or so guards left, plus the Chief of Security and the Overseer. Also, they were trying to set up a small barricade with some desks and other materials." Nazz's dad replied.

"Hmm… well the last thing I want to do is put you all in danger again but we don't have a choice. Alright, everyone who has a pistol you're up front, the rest will stay behind us and charge when I give the signal."

Everyone agreed to the plan and got into position. Nazz's parents would go in first since they were still on good terms with the guards. Everyone else hid in an alcove while Nazz's parents entered to distract the guards.

"Okay, everybody get ready!" Edd's dad whispered.

The kids readied their weapons and moved up to the door where they listened, waiting for Nazz's parents to give the signal.

"What are you guys doing? Is there some kind of problem?" the Chief of Security asked, sweating slightly.

"Well, no, not exactly, we just came back to tell you guys that the kids were last spotted at the armory. Unfortunately, only one guard made it out alive; he wanted me to tell you all… that it's game over!" Nazz's dad shouted as both he and his wife opened fire on the group of guards standing about.

The Chief of Security and the Overseer took cover behind the barricade while the rest of the guards were left to fend to off the attackers.

One guard fell immediately with a bullet to the chest while another two were shot in the stomach. Suddenly, the rest of the group burst through the door with a battle cry and let out a barrage of bullets on the guards. The remaining guards returned fire on the kids with some success. One bullet hit Eddy in the shoulder causing him to drop his gun and grab his shoulder in pain. Another hit Ed in the forearm, which hardly even seemed to affect him and another hit Nazz's dad in his right thigh, causing him to take a knee and but he continued to fire from a crouched position.

Rolf shot a guard three times in the chest before taking out his baton and throwing it at another guard who was about to shoot Ed. The baton hit the guard square in the face which knocked him down. Ed noticed this and nodded at Rolf to thank him before rushing over to finish off the guard. Jimmy meanwhile, was trying to run away from a guard who was chasing him with a police baton. He soon found himself trapped in a corner with no way of escape. The guard started to laugh and walked up on the frightened child slowly, while casually pounding the baton against his open palm.

Jimmy closed his eyes and covered his head with his arms and started to shake all over in terror. Just as the guard was about to strike a bullet struck him in the back of the head causing blood to fly out of his face as is passed through him. Jimmy opened his eyes to see the guard fall over dead and saw Sarah standing there, breathing heavily with her gun still slightly raised. She quickly ran over and embraced Jimmy.

"Sarah! You saved me!" Jimmy shouted as he returned the embrace.

"Of course I did! I wasn't going to let that guard hurt you!" Sarah said comfortingly. Sarah knew exactly what she had done but it didn't matter to her. Her best friend was safe now and she would do anything to protect him no matter what.

Nazz ran up to check on her dad who by now had been dragged away from the action by her mom and Edd's dad.

"Daddy! Are you okay?" Nazz asked as tears started to form in her eyes.

"Oh, I'll be alright sweetie. It's just a flesh wound, nothing serious." Nazz's dad reassured.

Eddy was still clutching his hurt shoulder and gritting his teeth in pain.

"Son of a bitch this hurts!" Eddy complained.

He let go of his shoulder and with his good arm picked up his gun. As soon as the battle had begun it stopped. The kids gathered together; they put the wounded in the back and had several people to tend to them while the others got ready to move in on the Overseer and the Chief. Rolf, Edd, Jonny, and Lee all took up positions while Edd's dad moved up a bit and called out.

"Glen! Give it up already! Just let the kids go, face it, there's nothing you can do to stop us!"

Slowly the Overseer and the Chief stood up from behind the barricade.

"This isn't over till I say it's over! I had something good going here, a perfect society! And then you all had to go and wreck everything! You want to go out into the Wasteland and die! Then leave, but you'll regret leaving this place in the end!" The Overseer shouted. He was red in the face and breathing heavily.

Without warning the Overseer grabbed the Chief's pistol and shot Edd's dad in the chest!

"NO!" Edd yelled as he quickly took aim with his pistol and fired several shots in the Overseer's general direction. One met its mark and hit him in the neck, severing his spinal cord and causing instantaneous death.

The Chief then pulled out a police baton, jumped the barricade and charged at the group. Ed also charged at the Chief and tackled him to the ground. He started to beat him in the face mercilessly with his police baton and then got up slowly. Ed turned around to face the others who were all slightly disturbed by all of the blood splattered on his face. Ed was breathing heavily, and he wasn't even quite sure how he felt now, there was too much adrenaline rushing through his veins for him to think. He had killed two men now, both times up close and personal. But that's what the hero does right? Faces his foes in close combat and always comes out on top, well that's what happens in the comic books at least…

Edd rushed to his father's side and grabbed his hand. "Father! No, father, speak to me!" Edd cried out.

Edd's dad coughed then quietly said, "Son, listen to me carefully. There's a city that I know of, out in the Wastes. It's called Square Bot City; it's a safe town. Go take the others there." Edd's dad rummaged a bit in one of his pockets and pulled out a piece of paper. "Here, take this. It's a map of the local area." Edd took the map and looked it over. It was poorly drawn and rather worn out but had a few markings on it indicating places of interest.

"But dad how did you come across this?" Edd questioned.

"Don't worry about that now. Sorry it's not the best but it should at least get you there. I haven't much time left in this world son, I'm proud of you; I know you'll do fine without me, I love you son…" and with those last words to his son, Edd's father died.

Edd started to cry and buried his face into his father's chest, despite the blood. Ed and Eddy walked over and both put a comforting hand on their friend's shoulder. Rolf went around and gathered up any spare weapons and ammo for the group. Nazz's dad limped to the middle of the room and announced, "Well, if you guys want we can give you all time to gather up any personal belongings and say goodbye to your families as well."

Nobody spoke, only nodded as they all slowly started to leave the room and returned to their respective homes and families. Ed and Eddy after a few minutes were finally able to convince Edd to go back home to his mom to tell her the news and to gather up his stuff.

* * *

After thirty minutes everyone was back at the Vault entrance including everyone's parents as well. They had a quick ceremony for Edd's dad and put his body in a makeshift coffin before burning it. Those who had been wounded during the journey to the Vault door were all patched up and everybody now had a police baton and 10mm Pistol with an extra magazine. Edd was at the lead of the group with his dad's map in hand. His inheritance.

Nazz's dad limped over to the Vault door control panel and pulled the switch. Suddenly, lights started to flash and the sound of pressurized air being released could be heard. The large metal cog blocking their escape slowly began to creak and move. It rolled out of the way revealing a small, dirt passageway with a worn, wooden door at the end.

The kids all said their final goodbyes and began to slowly march from Vault 117 and into the dirt passageway. There were the remains of skeletons at the Vault entrance, most likely people who were unfortunate enough to not get a spot reserved for them.

Suddenly Kevin's father came running up to the group. He started yelling at Kevin saying, "You yellow-bellied bastard! Get back here right now!" He slurred, obviously drunk. "I'll beat your ass in front of all of these people if I have to!"

"Fuck you dad! I hope you rot in Hell! You've ruined my life and now I'll finally be able to live, without you!" Kevin yelled back as he got into a defensive stance.

"Boy I warned you!" Kevin's father said then charged at his son. Kevin charged too and met his father in the middle where he tackled him to the ground. Kevin pulled out his baton and beat his father several times in the face with it before his dad threw him off of him. No one else wanted to get involved and were too astonished by what was happening to even think of helping. Kevin quickly recovered and attacked his dad again. This time his dad caught the baton before it hit him again and punched his son in the gut. Kevin stumbled backwards and without thinking whipped out his 10mm pistol and shot his father in the stomach three times. His dad stumbled backwards and fell. Blood began to pool around him. Kevin walked up to him, crouched beside him and said, "That was for mom." Kevin brought the pistol to his dad's head. "And this is for me."

"Fuck you Kevin!" His father snarled.

Kevin pulled the trigger then holstered his weapon. He was now free from his father's influence and had avenged his mother. Maybe now he could finally start living. The others were in a state of shock at what had just happened but Kevin didn't care he just kept walking towards the light at the end of the long tunnel. The others soon followed him and looked back at their families as the metal cog slowly rolled back into place. Everybody waved one last time before opening the wooden door at the end of the hallway, only to be blinded momentarily by a bright light. The sun.

The teens shielded their sensitive eyes from the bright sun until their vision adjusted some. They covered their eyes with their hands and squinted, taking in the landscape of this new Earth. They were in awe at the sight of the new barren, dry, desert-like Earth before them. Eddy spotted what looked like the cul-de-sac and said, "Hey guys, I think I found Peach Creek, or well, what's left of it anyways." Eddy pointed with his good arm so everyone else could see.

"Well, welcome home everybody." Edd said in an unenthusiastic voice.


	6. Chapter 5: Memories

**Chapter 5: Memories**

Everyone was silent after Edd spoke. There was really nothing to say, plus they were all still in shock at the condition of the Earth and from the previous events.

"What… What's wrong with everything?" Jimmy asked, almost in tears.

"Everything is… gone." Marie spoke.

"Wasteland Earth." Edd said.

"What?" Eddy asked.

"Wasteland Earth… that's what we should call it." Edd replied.

"Rolf agrees with brainy Edd boy."

"Makes sense, kind of sad though…" Sarah added.

Everyone agreed then, this new, strange world that had emerged from the ashes of atomic fire would be known as, Wasteland Earth.

"So, how do we get down?" May asked.

Everyone else was thinking the same thing. There was no apparent path down the cliff it seemed; it would appear that perhaps it had been destroyed during the bombings as they spotted signs of where maybe some sort of walkway may have stood.

"Plank says that we'll have to climb down." Jonny said.

"Melon Head's right, well let's get to climbing." Eddy said as he moved to start his descent.

The rest of the kids were a bit apprehensive at first but soon followed suit and began their descent down the craggy cliffside. The going was tough but luckily they all had backpacks to carry their stuff making the burden much easier to carry. Their eyes were still sensitive to the light and their bodies were not used to climbing quite as much as they once were prior to the war. Eddy and Kevin had it the worst with still recovering from their injuries. However, being the tough guys that they are they were doing a good job so far of fighting back the pain and kept moving. Jonny proved to be the most adept climber of the group. Having spent the majority of his early childhood climbing trees, hills, mountains, and such, he had little trouble with the rocky terrain.

Edd was climbing down and was starting to get tired. Sweat was running down his forehead and the salty perspiration was getting in his eyes. Edd went to reach for a small crevice in the cliff. Suddenly, several large drops of sweat drained into his eyes causing it to burn. Edd reached out for a rocky ledge only for it to break on him. He lost his balance and fell, screaming

"Ahhh! Help me!" Edd screamed. Edd's life flashed before his eyes. He knew that he was going to die, just knew it but at least he'd be with his father. Maybe death wouldn't be that bad now that he thought about it.

Everyone else froze in horror as they saw their friend fall to his inevitable doom!

Suddenly, a hand reached out and grabbed Edd before he fell to his death. Edd looked up and saw that it was Jonny who had caught him.

"Gotcha! You're right Plank that was a close one!" Jonny said.

Edd hung there for a moment before Jonny gently swung him back into the cliff so he (Edd) could get a new foothold.

"Thank you Jonny!" Edd exclaimed. "I'll have to find a way to repay you!"

Jonny pashawed before saying, "You don't need to repay me! I was more than happy to save you! Besides, you have the map!"

Jonny started to laugh, followed by Edd and the others.

The descent continued smoothly without any more incidents and before they all knew it they were finally on solid ground again. Eddy fell to his knees, threw his hands in the air and shouted, "Thank God for solid ground!" Eddy then kissed the irradiated dirt and pretended to worship the ground.

Kevin walked by him and said, "Chill man, no reason for you to go crazy, we still need you… for now." Kevin whispered the last two words so only he heard them.

"Yeah whatever… so sock head, is Peach Creek on the map or what?" Eddy asked.

"Yeah Double-D, what does the pretty map say?" Ed asked as he tried to stroke it like a kitten.

Edd quickly pulled the map away from Ed's fingers and walked a short distance away from the others before replying, "Well, it says that Old Peach Creek is about two miles away from our location and that Square Bot City is about ten miles away, maybe more."

"Dudes, I don't know about you but I think we should stop by Peach Creek and check it out for old time's sake." Nazz suggested.

"Rolf agrees with go-go Nazz girl and also desires to see Rolf's farm once more."

"Yeah, for once I agree with you too blondie." Lee added.

"What the hell, sure, why not." Eddy said.

Edd stood there with his back still turned to the group as he continued to look at the map. He wasn't sure how he would handle going back but figured that there could be some supplies there. He finally turned around and said, "Well, I guess it's agreed then, we're going to Peach Creek."

It was with that they started their journey to Peach Creek. The same thing was on everyone's mind as they approached their old home. What were they going to see? What had become of their homes? And how had their world come to this? The kids were still in shock at the new landscape of Wasteland Earth. It was a new and alien world to them and they knew it would take time to get used to it.

They crossed the open plains that led them to their hometown of Peach Creek and found along the way that little vegetation had survived the nuclear war. It seemed that only charred trees, irradiated soil, rocks, and small dried up shrubs were all that had survived. They had yet to see any form of wildlife, there weren't even any bugs much to their surprise. The heat was also another new factor. The sun seemed to be brighter and radiated a lot more heat than they were used to. The lack of trees of trees in this barren desert made it even harder to hide from the unforgiving rays of the sun and it was only a matter of time before their water supply would run out.

Regardless, they continued to walk out on the open plains, which seemed to stretch on for miles, maybe even forever for all they knew. Soon enough though, they reached the outskirts of Peach Creek or rather Old Peach Creek. The majority of their homes had been wiped out with only the foundations remaining. A few houses however, had somehow survived the war and were still standing proudly against the horizon as they approached. Ed and Sarah's house, the majority of Rolf's farm, and Eddy's house were the only ones left standing.

The group stood atop a small hill and looked out over the remains of Peach Creek. They were in awe and speechless for the most part of what was left.

"Holy shit…" Eddy whispered.

Rolf was the first to begin the descent from the hill into Peach Creek. He was walking fast and was making his way towards his farm. The others followed suit and went with him to what was left of his home. Rolf didn't even bother going inside of his house and immediately vaulted over what was left of his old, dilapidated fence. He went towards his shed, which was surprisingly still intact and hurriedly opened the door. He looked into the darkness of the shed before entering.

Everyone continued to follow but kept their distance, afraid that Rolf may be angered if they intruded on whatever he was doing. They simply sat down and waited for Rolf to exit his shed. They could hear the sound of some scuffling and Rolf occasionally cursing in his native tongue. Several minutes passed by before Eddy finally built up the courage and moved closer to the shed.

"Yo, Rolfie boy! You alright in there?" Eddy called out.

Rolf suddenly emerged from the shed with a wheelbarrow filled with random tools and junk.

"Rolf is fine loud-mouthed Ed boy! Come everyone; take a look at what Rolf has recovered!"

Everyone did as he said and moved in to get a better look at the wheelbarrow of supplies.

"Uhhh… Rolf, what is all of this?" Edd asked while scrutinizing an old, rusty bolt that he picked up from the pile.

"Yeah, it just looks like a pile of junk to me!" Sarah complained.

"You see junk a pile of junk but Rolf sees a pile of precious gems!" Rolf explained.

"Rolf, are you alright? Maybe you should get out of the heat for a bit man and chill?" Kevin suggested.

"Are you all simpletons? Rolf believes that we can use this so called "pile of junk" to make weapons, armor, or anything else for that matter! Double-D Ed boy! Surely you can see what Rolf is trying to say?"

Edd sat there, still scrutinizing the wheelbarrow of supplies before saying, "Hmm, maybe Rolf is right. Besides, if we're to survive out here we may need to fabricate some form of protection. Rolf, do you have any more stashes of supplies around?"

Rolf face lit up with joy before he responded "Of course! Rolf has much more to offer! Come on everybody! Follow Rolf!"

Rolf led the group to his basement door, which was locked so he used a hammer from the wheelbarrow to break the rusty padlock. Rolf pulled open the doors and was hit in the face with a musty odor. He reeled back a bit but regained himself and delved into the dark cellar with everyone else right behind him. Rolf turned on his Pipboy 3000's light as well as everyone else. The power of twelve separate Pipboy 3000 lights was plenty enough to illuminate the dark basement. Rolf was right when he said that he had more. There were many bins filled with random junk, farming equipment, other tools, and spare parts for his tractor.

"Damn Rolf! You have a lot of random crap lying around." Eddy commented.

"Yeah Rolf, why do you even have all of this junk lying around here anyways?" Nazz asked.

"Rolf's got a lot of junk up in his trunk huh guys?" Ed joked as he dove into a pile of junk, laughing stupidly; everyone else simply shook their heads.

"Rolf is always prepared for anything, besides why throw away such useful items?"

"Let's just be glad that we have Rolf with us." Kevin added.

"Well, if we plan on turning any of this into weapons or armor we will need to haul it out of the basement and up to the surface. So, I suggest that we go ahead and start." Edd suggested.

"Yes, sock headed Ed boy is correct. All of the strong males shall carry out the junk while the females and lesser in strength men will sort the materials into different piles." Rolf said.

Ed, Rolf, Eddy, Kevin, and Jonny did most of the heavy lifting while the rest sorted and organized the objects into different piles. While Edd was organizing a pile of junk, he noticed Rolf's old tractor sitting next to the house. Rolf and Ed were just coming out of the basement carrying a huge box filled to the brim with junk.

"Hey Rolf, you don't happen to have any more sentimental value left for your tractor do you?" Edd asked.

Rolf and Ed slowly and carefully set down the box and both heaved a sigh of relief as they relieved themselves of the heavy burden. Rolf wiped some of the sweat off of his brow with his arm before replying, "Double-D Ed boy, do as you would please to Rolf's tractor. It should provide us with plenty of useful materials."

After Edd received the okay he walked over to the tractor and started to examine it for anything useful. Edd noted that much of the metal plating on the tractor might be able to be fashioned into some form of body armor.

"Hmm, if I could find a way to remove these metal plates, perhaps I could make some armor out of it. Ohh, this looks interesting!" Edd was looking at the tractors worn engine but was more interested in the cylinders and pistons.

"Perhaps I could find a way to fashion these into some kind of firearm. Maybe a pressurized weapon of sorts, I just will need a way to create some pressurized air…" Edd mused.

Edd continued dialoguing with himself while Nazz, Marie, Lee, May, Sarah, and Jimmy continued to sort the junk. May rather than working was busy admiring Ed as he carried an extremely heavy box all by himself and sat it down. She continued to watch him as he made his way back to the cellar for more junk, all the while not noticing his admirer. Lee saw this and elbowed May hard in the ribs.

"Quit watching your boyfriend and get back to work!"

May grabbed her now throbbing ribs and yelled "Ouch Lee! What's wrong with you?"

Lee turned to face her sister and yelled back, "You're my problem at the moment! So shut up and work!"

"You shut up fatty!" May returned.

They continued back and forth and all the while made things awkward for the rest of the kids, especially Marie. Marie finally got tired of it and moved down the line towards Nazz, Sarah and Jimmy.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Marie asked as she kneeled down next to Nazz and began helping her sort out a pile of junk.

"Oh, hey Marie! You know, sorting through pile after pile of useless junk." Nazz said and then started to giggle.

Marie laughed and said, "Yeah, I can't stand my sisters right now. They're both so immature at times."

Sarah looked over to see them still arguing. "I see what you mean."

Marie sighed, "Yep, sad part is that Lee started this because May was wasting time. Now look at her… what an idiot."

Sarah, Nazz, and Jimmy all started to laugh. Marie joined in until she noticed Edd by the tractor still gathering parts from it.

Nazz noticed Marie looking at Edd. She smiled and gently elbowed her in the stomach.

"Well, why don't you just go over there and say hello?" Nazz suggested.

"Yeah Marie, just go say hi or something, it looks like he could use some company." Sarah added.

Marie regarded their words before looking back over at Edd.

"Well, I guess it's worth a shot. I suppose I can go over and at least say hi…" Marie slowly got up and started to make her way towards Edd.

"Yeah! You go girl!" Jimmy cheered.

Marie smiled softly to herself after the comment and continued walking.

Edd was struggling to pull off a metal plate when suddenly he noticed another set of hands helping him. He looked over and saw Marie Kanker next to him.

"Oh, why, hello there Marie how are you doing?" Edd said.

"Hey Double-D! I'm doing alright. You know, I saw you over here struggling a bit and wanted to lend you a hand, if you don't mind." Marie said.

"Actually yes, I was having some trouble getting off a few of these plates…" Edd said as her returned his attention to the tractor.

"No problem, I'll help you out." Marie said excitedly.

"Thanks Marie." Edd replied with a smile.

The two pulled with all of their might and were after some time able to extract the stubborn plate from the tractor. Edd wiped the sweat off of his brow.

"Whoo! That was quite the stubborn plate!"

"You're telling me. Guess it was a good thing I decided to come over and lend a hand eh?" Marie said.

"Yes, thank you very much Marie!" Edd thanked her.

Suddenly, Rolf called out, "Sock head Ed boy! Come! Rolf requires your assistance!"

"I'll be right over Rolf!" Edd yelled back.

Edd thanked Marie again before running over to Rolf, who was picking through a pile of scrap. Marie sat there smiling as she watched Edd run off. Thinking to herself she said, _"Well, that's a step, albeit a small one but it's still a step."_

Edd quickly covered the distance between he and Rolf and saw him kneeling next to a pile of scrap.

"What do you require of me Rolf?" Edd asked before kneeling next to Rolf.

Rolf without diverting his attention from the scrap answered, "Rolf needs your help for creating the more advanced weapons and armor brainy Ed boy."

"Well actually, I think I may know how to make a pressurized weapon out of some spare parts from your tractor. All I need is some extra scrap metal, a way to store and quickly release the air and some form of a projectile to fire. Also, I was able to extract a lot of metal plates from your tractor that I believe would make some decent battle armor." Edd said.

Rolf sat and pondered Edd's remarks for a moment before saying, "One of Kevin boy's old bicycle pumps may work for creating a source of pressure. Rolf also has some pipes to be used as a barrel and for projectiles we could use nails, screws, bolts, or anything else that is similar. Leave the metal plates and armor making to Rolf; you deal with trying to make some weapons. In fact, everyone! Gather around Rolf!"

Everyone did as he said and gathered around.

"Everybody needs to create their own weapon. Whether it is a simple club or something more advanced, everyone needs to make something."

The group nodded in agreement and sprinted off towards the piles of junk to make their weapons.

Edd went back to the tractor and gathered up all of the cylinders and pistons; then went back and found the pipes that Rolf was talking about and picked up a bicycle pump, some scrap metal and wood as well as a handful of nails. Edd found a nice quiet place under a charred tree and started to work on the design for his new gun. The thought of making a weapon was disheartening to Edd. He was used to making more peaceful inventions but times were different now, unfortunately.

Rolf walked over to his old tractor and found the pile of metal plates. Rolf had with him a hammer, some strips of leather, and pieces of cloth, all of which were on a workman's belt. Rolf was also carrying a small anvil and set it down near the pile of metal plates. He immediately went to work hammering the metal, in an attempt to shape it into some decent battle armor.

The rest of the group was busy scrounging through the piles of scrap and junk, trying to find parts to make a weapon or two. Ed was busy making a giant club. Kevin was trying to sharpen a piece of metal to try and make a sword. Jonny found a large piece of wood and was nailing sharp objects into it. Marie was making a proper sheath for her serrated knife that she found in the Vault. Jimmy found a small metal club to use, so he went to help Sarah who was making some spiked knuckles. May was attempting to make a slingshot. Lee found a baseball bat and was trying to drive a large spike through it. Nazz was making some hand wraps and found some old nun chucks. Eddy was attempting to make a battery gun. He gathered up several 12V batteries, a metal pipe for the barrel, some wires, a piece of metal to be used as a trigger, and some scrap wood and metal to make up the body of the gun. Eddy also found some marbles and small rocks to be used as projectiles.

* * *

Everyone worked hard into the night to get their weapons made or at least partially made. They were all worn out and tired from all of the day's events. Edd yawned and put down his weapon that he was working on. He got up, stretched, and then rejoined the group who had already finished their weapons. They were all sitting around a small campfire; everyone was sitting on charred logs, rocks, or the ground. Marie was singing a song she wrote as well as playing her guitar while the others were either listening or carrying on their own conversations.

Edd sat back down next to Ed who was singing along (badly) with Marie.

"Hey Ed, what did you end up making?" Edd asked as he yawned again.

Ed stopped singing, much to everyone's relief and said, "Oh! I made a giant club! You wanna see it?"

Edd rubbed his eyes and answered, "Sure Ed, why not."

Ed got up and ran off a ways from the fire before returning moments later with his giant club.

"Wow Ed, that's rather impressive." Edd complimented.

"Jeez Ed! You think you went a bit overboard with that thing?" Eddy yelled as he noted the size of the club which was just a foot or so shorter than him.

The head of the club was a conglomeration of random junk all fused and mashed together.

"I can't wait to try it out on some monsters!" Ed yelled.

Rolf approached the campfire and sat down. He was worn out and was ready to go to sleep.

"So Rolf, you finish the armor?" Kevin asked while still continuing to sharpen his new blade.

Rolf heaved a deep breath before answering, "Rolf has finished his task. Tomorrow Rolf will hand out the armor, as Rolf has specially made each suit to fit the needs of each individual."

"Sweet! Plank and I can't wait to check it out! What's that buddy?" Jonny stuck his ear next to Plank's mouth.

"Hey, Plank wants to know if you made him any armor Rolf?"

Rolf made an annoyed sighed before saying tiredly, "No, Rolf did not make armor for the block of wood because he doesn't need any."

"Sorry buddy, maybe we'll find some for you out here." Jonny reassured Plank who was silent.

"So Eddy, I saw that you were making a gun of your own. Care to tell me what it is?" Edd asked.

"Oh, that piece of shit. Man I can't get that stupid thing to work!" Eddy said in frustration.

"Well Eddy, I could tinker a round with it and in the meantime you can use the gun that I made, since I don't really have a need for it. Does that sound good to you?" Edd said while smiling

Eddy's face lit up and he responded, "Hell yeah! That would be awesome sock head!"

"I thought so, well tomorrow I'll take show you how it works." Edd said.

"Sounds like a plan buddy!" Eddy replied back.

Ed continued to admire his club then randomly announced, "I am no longer just Ed! I am now Ed, Slayer of Monsters!" Ed yelled loudly as he stood up and raised his club in the air.

Rolf tiredly stood up and announced, "Well everybody if you wish you can sleep inside of Rolf's abode tonight or you can make camp out here. Rolf however is going to sleep inside."

Rolf finished his announcement and began walking towards his house.

"Sarah! I don't want to sleep outside! What if there are monsters out here?"

Sarah wrapped her arm around Jimmy comfortingly and said, "Don't worry Jimmy; I'll escort you inside where it's safe. Come on!"

Sarah and Jimmy got up and left for Rolf's house.

"Yeah Lee, I don't want to sleep out in the dirt either!" May complained.

"I'm with you for once on this one. Come on May!" Lee said.

The two sisters followed Jimmy and Sarah towards the house as well.

Marie put her guitar back in her case and said, "Well, I don't know about you guys but I want to sleep out under the stars. I mean I haven't see stars in years and despite this being a post-apocalyptic world, tonight is rather beautiful out."

Marie started to unravel her blanket and laid it out on the ground.

"I must agree with Marie, tonight is indeed a beautiful night!" Edd said.

"Yeah forget about everyone else! They don't know what they're missing!" Eddy said as he followed Marie's example and laid out his own blanket.

"Ohh! Ohh! Look guys!" Ed yelled as he pointed at a shooting star that was passing overhead in the night sky.

"Everybody make a wish guys!" Nazz exclaimed as she stared at the star in wonder.

The kids all made their own mental wishes as they watched the bright star slowly fade away into the black sky above.

"Absolutely spectacular!" Edd exclaimed in awe of the star's beauty.

Everyone had a smile on their face and despite the difficulties of the day they were glad that they were out of the Vault and out on the surface. Even if the surface now was hot, arid, dusty, and dangerous.

Edd stretched as he let out a large yawn. After he finished he tiredly said, "Well we should probably have someone keep watch. So, who wants to go first?"

"I'll do it. I'm not that tired anyways." Kevin said as he slowly stood up and stretched.

"Thank you Kevin!" Edd said.

"No problem." Kevin replied.

The others unraveled their blankets and laid them out on the sandy soil. Kevin walked a short distance away from the others and sat on a small, charred log as he took first watch. Everybody laid down on their blankets to get comfortable and one by one they each fell asleep with the memories of their wishes still fresh on their minds as well as the horrors each of them had experienced.


	7. Chapter 6: Mayhem

**Chapter 6: Mayhem**

Ed woke up with a start and quickly sat up. He was sweating slightly and had a scared look on his face. He looked around and realized that it was just a dream and that he wasn't actually being hunted by the Giant Squid of Nebulon 87. Ed sighed in relief and smiled. He got up and noticed that everyone was still asleep, except for Rolf, who was sitting where Kevin was sitting last night when he was on watch. Ed happily walked over to Rolf who had his 10mm Pistol resting in his lap. He was reading a book but Ed couldn't make out what the title was. Ed approached Rolf and said, "Hey Rolf! What're you reading? Is it issue number 17 of Evil Tim?"

Rolf slowly folded the page that he was on and closed the book. He holstered his pistol and stood up and stretched. Facing Ed, Rolf replied, "No, lacking in brain matter Ed boy, Rolf is not reading about this Tim person who is evil. Rolf is reading one of his families old wilderness survival guides that luckily survived the war. Unfortunately, it is in Rolf's native tongue so only Rolf can interpret it."

Ed was able to get the point of what Rolf was trying to say, well most of it.

"Awesome! Can I read it?" Ed asked.

Rolf face palmed before saying, "How about you help Rolf cook breakfast?"

"Yay! Breakfast! Ed's belly wants food!"

Rolf and Ed walked back to where the group was sleeping and started up another small fire. Rolf started to dig through one of the bags and pulled out several boxes of food while Ed found the bottles of water and handed them to Rolf. Rolf started to cook breakfast while Ed sat and watched.

The smell of food was enough to wake up Eddy, who sat up and stretched while saying, "So, what's for breakfast? Anything good?"

Rolf continued to cook the cafeteria quality food and answered, "It's nothing that you haven't already eaten before loud-mouthed Ed boy."

Eddy took that as a yes and got up. He decided to go ahead and wake the others.

"Hey Ed, just play along alright." Eddy said.

"What?" Ed yelled.

Eddy just shook his head in annoyance before clearing his throat and yelling, "Everybody hurry and get up quick! We're under attack!"

Everybody shot up and drew their pistols, except for Rolf, Eddy and Ed.

"Ahhh! Eddy, do something!" Ed screamed as he grabbed hold of Eddy's leg.

"Where are the attackers at Eddy?" Edd asked with a tense look on his face.

Eddy immediately started to burst out laughing, followed by Ed. They both fell to the ground as they continued to laugh hysterically.

Eddy continued to laugh uncontrollably and was barely able to say, "You guys should have seen the looks on your faces!"

"Ha-ha, yeah!" Ed added.

Edd looked extremely peeved, as well as everyone else.

"That was not funny guys! Never do that again unless it is a real emergency!" Edd scolded.

"Yeah dudes, not cool!" Nazz added.

Jonny on the other hand was smiling and said, "Wow! You guys really got us! Plank almost wet himself!" Jonny then started to laugh.

"Ugh! Listen douche! Next time you do that I swear I'll beat you face in!" Kevin threatened.

Eddy finally was able to control his laughter and apologized, "I'm sorry guys, it will never happen again, I promise!" Eddy laughed a bit afterwards before he finally calmed down.

Ed also stopped laughing and sat back down next to Rolf.

Rolf had a smile on his face the whole time and laughed on the inside at Eddy's practical joke. He knew that what Eddy did could have been dangerous but they needed some comic relief after everything from the day before, especially after what they had all seen in the Vault.

"Well, since I'm up I'll go wake up everyone else inside." Marie said.

She yawned then started walking towards the house.

"Breakfast should be done soon everybody." Rolf announced.

"Good, I'll set out some plates and utensils. You don't happen to have a table inside do you Rolf?" Edd asked.

"Yes, Double-D Ed boy, Rolf has a table inside that is still in okay condition. Dim-witted Ed boy! Help Rolf move the table outside!" Rolf ordered.

Ed got up and saluted Rolf before saying, "Yes sir Rolf! Going to move a table! Going to move a table! Going to move a table!" Ed repeated, as he ran towards the house.

Edd and Nazz pulled out the plates and utensils, while Jonny, Eddy, and Kevin looked hungrily at the food. Finally, Marie returned with the others and a few seconds later Rolf and Ed came out with the table. Ed and Rolf set up the table, then Edd, Nazz, Jimmy, and Sarah set the table. Rolf and Kevin went around and set food on everyone's plates, while Ed and Eddy set down a bottle of purified water for each person. Once the table was set and everyone had something to eat and drink they dug in.

With a mouthful of food, Eddy commented, "Damn Rolf, too bad we didn't have you cooking the food back at the Vault!"

Rolf finished chewing his food before saying, "Thank you Ed boy! Rolf added a secret spice that was in Rolf's house."

Edd swallowed and wiped his mouth before saying, "I agree! This food is fantastic! Is this spice from your Old Country?"

"Actually yes, it is made from the grounded seeds of the Unca Plant. It is a very rare and highly coveted plant in Rolf's country. Worth more than gold!"

The word gold caught Eddy's attention. He looked up and said, "Too bad we don't live there; otherwise we would be filthy stinking rich right now!"

"Someday Ed boy, you will learn what is truly valuable in this world." Rolf said.

Once they finished their meal Edd and Nazz put away the dishes and utensils, while everyone else started to pack up their gear.

"You know guys; there are still two houses left that we haven't checked." Kevin pointed out.

"Kevin boy is right! We shall split into two groups. One will check loud-mouthed Ed boy's house and the others will check dim-witted Ed boy and she-who-can-pierce-eardrums Sarah."

"How about me, Eddy, Marie, May, and Jonny check Eddy's house and the rest can check Ed's abode?" Edd suggested.

"That sounds good to me." Eddy said.

"Rolf also agrees. Alright then, everybody get into your groups and only take what you think will be helpful!"

* * *

The two groups gathered their gear and made their way to their designated houses. They looked around at what was left of their once beautiful cul-de-sac along the way. The majority of the asphalt and sidewalks was cracked and destroyed. The lawns were now completely dirt. There were only a few charred trees and scrawny shrubs and rocks, and lots of rocks. The other houses were merely foundations with fallen support beams and rubble. A few mailboxes and a fire hydrant had survived but were terribly worn and decrepit.

The group heading to Eddy's house went around the back of the house to the door to Eddy's room. Eddy slid open his door which fell off the hinges. Eddy walked over the fallen door and into his room, which was a wreck. Dust was thick in the air and covered everything. All of Eddy's furniture was in terrible shape and there was trash and clothes everywhere. Eddy walked around at his room careful and then everybody else followed him in.

"Okay, I think we should split up and check the different rooms for stuff." Eddy suggested.

"I agree. Eddy, how about you search your room, I can search the kitchen, Jonny can search the living room, and Marie and May can search the upstairs?" Edd suggested.

"Sounds good!" Eddy agreed.

Everyone else agreed and began their search.

Eddy searched through all of his drawers but found nothing worth taking. Next, he searched the closet but again, nothing good. The majority of his clothes were in bad condition and weren't worth taking. He had already taken what he viewed as valuable at the time of the evacuation and so moved on to search the rest of his house.

Edd searched through all of the kitchen drawers and found some useful items. He found several kitchen knives in okay condition and a metal meat tenderizer. He laid them on the kitchen table, and then proceeded to check the refrigerator. Edd opened the fridge and was hit in the face the smell of rotten food. He immediately reeled back and shut the door quickly almost spilling his guts onto the floor.

"That's disgusting!" Edd exclaimed.

He then went on checking the rest of the kitchen to try and get rid of the nausea that was setting in.

Jonny searched through the living room but the room was in such bad shape that he just moved on. He looked around in the hallways but still didn't find much of anything. He then stumbled upon a desk and started to rummage through it. Surprisingly, the majority of the stuff was in good condition and hadn't been harmed by the war. Most of it however, was just a bunch of papers but Jonny did find a .32 Pistol and a small box of ammo tucked away in the back. It was still in good condition, so Jonny ran back to the kitchen to find Edd.

He found Edd and Eddy taking inventory on what they had both found.

"Hey guys, check out what Plank and I found!"

They both turned around and saw the pistol.

"Dude! Holy shit! I didn't know dad had a gun!"

Eddy ran and took the gun from Jonny and inspected it.

"That's a nice find! Let's hope the others had as much luck as we did!" Edd said.

Marie and May came walking down the stairs and found the guys in the kitchen still checking out the gun.

"We didn't find shit upstairs." Marie said before taking a seat on the kitchen counter.

"Well, we did find a few bobby pins and a screwdriver. I can use those to pick locks." May corrected.

"Better than nothing." Eddy said.

"Come on! Let's go check on the others everybody." Edd said.

They gathered up everything they found and put it in the packs. They then proceeded out of the front door and back into the street.

* * *

Meanwhile, the other group heading towards Ed's house had made their way to Ed's front door, which he kicked in S.W.A.T. style. The door broke easily enough and they all walked inside. Ed's house hadn't fared much better, again there was dust everywhere. Trash and rubble covered the floor and most of the furniture was broken.

"Ed boy! You can go check you old room. The rest of us will split up. Rolf, go-go Nazz girl and scary Kanker girl will check the downstairs and the rest will check the upstairs."

"Yay!" Ed yelled as he started to run towards his room.

Everyone else split into their groups and began searching the house for anything worth taking.

Ed ran to the staircase leading to his room and started running down it. He tripped and fell down most of the stairs, laughing the entire time. He finally came to a stop at the bottom and got up. He kicked in the door to his room and ran in.

"Ed is home!" Ed exclaimed at the top of his lungs.

If Ed's room wasn't already bad enough, the apocalypse only made things worse. All of the food was completely rotten, filling the entire room with an awful odor that didn't even seem to bother Ed. All of his furniture was completely destroyed and his floor was covered in rubble and heaps of trash. Ed just walked around his room trying to look for stuff but couldn't find anything. He did however, find a few comic books which he picked up and stuffed in his pack.

Rolf was searching through the kitchen. He was dumping out all of the drawers and quickly searching them. He didn't find much worth taking and moved onto the fridge, which was in awful condition and smelled terrible before he had even opened it. Rolf decided to just leave the fridge alone and moved on to look elsewhere.

Sarah was looking through her room to check and see if there was anything left taking. She had already done a pretty good job of taking only valuables when they were packing to move into the Vault, and so, moved on. She returned downstairs and found Lee looking through the TV cabinet. Lee got up and turned around to see Sarah.

"Find anything upstairs?" Lee asked.

"Nope, I can see you haven't found anything either." Sarah replied.

"Yeah, just isn't much left here to take."

Rolf, Nazz, Kevin, Jimmy, and Ed all walked into the living room from different doors.

"You guys find anything?" Lee asked.

"Hell yeah! Jimmy and I scored big time with the garage!" Kevin replied.

"Awesome! What did you dudes find?" Nazz asked.

"Just follow us and we'll show you!" Jimmy exclaimed.

They all followed Jimmy and Kevin to the garage. In the middle of the room they had a pile of stuff that they had found. There were three one gallon cans of gas, a small toolbox filled with tools and other useful items, a first aid kit, two hockey sticks, a set of football armor, several sets of soccer shin guards, and a car battery.

"Damn. You guys were right." Lee said.

"Ho-ho! Kevin boy and Jimmy have found some good supplies! Okay then everybody, pack up the stuff and let's go meet the others!"

Everyone packed away the supplies and exited through the garage door and back into the streets.

The two groups saw each other and met in the middle of the cul-de-sac.

"So, what did you guys find?" Eddy called out.

"Better than what you found!" Kevin yelled back.

"We'll see about that!" Jonny added.

They all finally met and immediately set out everything they had found. Edd's group found five slightly worn kitchen knives, a metal meat tenderizer, ten bobby pins, a screwdriver and a .32 Pistol with a total of thirty shots. Edd finished laying out the last of the stuff and stood up. Rolf and his group looked at the other group's supplies and started laughing.

"Please! Let Rolf show you what we found!"

Kevin and Rolf began pulling out all of their stuff and set it out.

"Damn it! How the hell did you guys find all of this?" Eddy yelled once he saw everything they found.

"Because, our group is the best, duh!" Nazz said then started to laugh.

"Yeah Eddy, you can't win all the time!" Sarah added then gave a high-five to Nazz and Kevin.

Kevin had a smug look on his face.

"It's alright dorky; we all know I'm the best anyways!" Kevin said.

This made Eddy mad but he was able to hold back his anger.

"Well either way, I think we all did a good job of salvaging useful equipment!" Edd congratulated.

"Hey guys, who gets the pistol?" Jonny asked.

"Good question, well it was in Eddy's house and it did belong to Eddy's father, so I think Eddy deserves it." Edd said.

Everyone else agreed with Edd. Eddy smiled and bent over to pick up the pistol and the extra ammo.

Eddy examined the pistol and nodded his head in agreement.

"I guess this is a good enough inheritance." Eddy said before tucking it into his belt.

While everyone was talking about the stuff they found Ed was looking towards the junkyard. Ed got into the middle of everyone and yelled

"Hey guys! What about the junkyard?" Ed pointed off towards the mounds of trash in the distance.

"Dim-witted Ed boy, Rolf is impressed!"

"Wow Ed, you actually said suggested something intelligent for once, too bad you didn't do that back when we scammed people! We could have been rich!" Eddy complained.

"Well, I think it might be worth a look. How about it every one?" Edd asked.

Everybody nodded in agreement.

"Then let's go!" Kevin ordered. With that, the group packed up everything they had found back into their packs and began the short journey to the junkyard.

* * *

The group made it the entrance of the junkyard and looked at all of the mountains upon mountains of trash. They slowly entered and began walking around and searching for anything of value. The majority of the stuff was so worn out and trashy that it wasn't worth taking. They continued to move deeper into the junkyard, searching for anything that might aid them. They suddenly heard a sound. It sounded like someone or something was throwing stuff around and rummaging through a pile of trash. Rolf motioned for everyone to be quiet and started to move towards the sound. The group was completely silent as they followed Rolf.

The kids continued walking towards the sound and suddenly happened upon a scraggly old man who had his back turned to them. He was searching through a pile of trash and was throwing all kinds of junk behind him as he continued his crazed search. The group slowed down, not wanting to disturb him but he had apparently already heard them coming. He suddenly turned around and faced the group. He looked as if he hadn't eaten or bathed for that matter in weeks. He was shirtless, revealing his ribs which were very much visible. He had shaggy gray hair and a crazed look about him. One of his eyes twitched, whether from some sort of eye disease or simply from insanity, the group could not tell. He smiled at them and showed that the majority of his teeth were rotten and yellow. A rough gray beard covered his face, only adding to his crazy look. His tattered pants hung loosely on his bony hips and had a small pocket knife clipped onto his pants pocket.

Everyone in the group pulled out their pistols and pointed them at the old man, who raised his hands in the air and started to laugh a bit.

"Don't shoot! I'm just an old man trying to find his way in this crazy world!"

"Yeah but you have a knife!" Eddy yelled.

The old man looked down at his pocket knife and said, "This old thing? It's about as old as I am, and besides every one of you has a gun."

Edd put down his pistol and said, "He's right. So, what are you doing out here in the junkyard Mr…?"

"The name's Carl! And I'm just trying to survive like everyone else."

"Well nice to meet you Carl! My name is Edd and these are my friends. We just left from one of the Vault's and are trying to find Square Bot City."

Eddy elbowed Edd and softly yelled, "What the hell sock head? Just go ahead and tell a complete stranger our life story why don't ya?"

The old man got a smile on his face and said, "So, you say that you're travelers and new to this whole thing? Well I'll let you all in on a little secret. I know where a treasure is! A big one too! And if you guys help me get it I'll let you all have some it! What do you say?"

Eddy upon hearing the word treasure was all for going on the quest to find it. He turned around and faced Edd, Kevin and Rolf. He had a greedy look in his eyes and said

"We have to do it!" Eddy yelled.

"What the fuck has gotten into you dorky? You seriously expect me to trust some old guy?" Kevin yelled.

"Kevin's right Eddy! We don't know what he is capable of!" Edd berated.

"Has your brain fallen out of your ear's loud-mouthed Ed boy?" Rolf exclaimed.

"Listen guys! There's twelve of us and one of him, plus we have all of the guns! What could possibly happen? Besides, we need money, because what happens when we run out of food and clean water and we have no way to buy more?" Eddy said.

"Let's ask everyone else and see what they say." Edd suggested.

Edd turned around and told the old man to wait a moment. They all huddled together and started to discuss the plan.

"Okay, I'm assuming you all heard what he said right?" Kevin asked.

Everyone nodded.

"Alright then, the plan is, do we go with him or continue on our way? So, raise your hand if you think we should follow him." Edd said.

Eddy, Jonny, Ed, Lee, and May raised their hands.

"Well, it looks like majority says no." Edd said.

"What? No! You guys didn't even vote!" Eddy complained

"We didn't have to since only five of you raised your hands and there are twelve of us." Edd explained.

"I want a recount!" Eddy demanded.

"Face it; we aren't going after some damn treasure that probably doesn't even exist in the first place!" Kevin yelled.

The group continued to fight while the old man stood there and watched with an evil smile on his face.

Suddenly, he whistled loudly which caused everyone to turn around. Without warning seven armed men came out of hiding from behind mounds of trash in front of the kids. The men were no more than fifty yards away and were dressed in some form of beat up armor that barely seemed to cover any vital areas, let alone their bodies. Some were wearing hats that looked like it had two antennae sticking out of the top. Three were armed with hand-to-hand weapons while the rest had pistols and another had an assault rifle. The old man made his way towards the armed men and stood in the middle of them all.

One of the men handed him a .32 Pistol, which the old man took gladly. He then pointed it at the group and said, "Sorry kiddies but we'll be taking all your stuff and your lives for that matter!"

He started to laugh manically and shot his pistol. The bullet hit Jimmy square in the chest and put him down. His armor that Rolf had made for him was so light that it did little to stop the bullet. The others quickly scrambled for cover once the other bandits opened fire on them. Ed, Eddy, Nazz, and Rolf all ran behind a broken down car, Edd, Kevin, and Lee were hiding behind a large mound of trash, and May, Marie, Jonny, and Sarah all hid behind a large, white van. Jimmy continued to writhe in pain on the ground just ten yards away from most of the kids. The ground around him was starting to turn red and he was coughing up blood.

The group returned fire from their positions, forcing the bandits to take cover as well. It soon turned into a full-fledged gunfight for survival. Ed was loading another magazine into his 10mm Pistol when he looked over and saw his sister crying about Jimmy. Ed peeked out from behind his cover and saw Jimmy still moving around. Ed ducked back down as another barrage of bullets went overhead. Ed took off his pack and anything else that would weigh him down. He suddenly broke cover and ran out into the middle of the firefight.

"Ed! What the fuck are you doing? Get your ass back here!" Eddy yelled.

Ed ignored Eddy and continued his mission. He fired his pistol with one hand and was able to hit the bandit with the assault rifle in the chest as he popped back up. Ed grabbed Jimmy with one arm and flung him over his shoulder and with the other he continued to fire. Bullets were whizzing past Ed and were close enough that he could almost feel them grazing his skin.

Ed started running back for the car that he was hiding behind earlier.

"Give them some cover fire!" Kevin yelled.

Everyone laid down some cover fire, which was enough to get Ed and Jimmy back to safety. Nazz pulled off Jimmy's armor and whipped out the first aid kit from her pack and started to give medical treatment to him. Jimmy by now was barely staying conscious and was losing a lot of blood as the bullet had pierced one of his lungs. Another bullet had also hit him in the chest again once the firefight broke out.

One of the other bandits picked up the fallen man's assault rifle and riddled the white van with bullet holes. Rolf was reloading his 10mm Pistol when he said, "We need to flank these bandits before someone else gets hurt or worse!"

"I'm on it!" Eddy yelled as he broke cover and sprinted over to Edd's group.

Bullets were flying past Eddy but luckily for him, none of them met their mark.

"Yo, Double-D! We need to flank these sons of bitches! Listen you, me and Kevin will go around while Lee give us some cover!"

"Somebody should probably signal the others then!" Lee suggested as she blind fired her pistol.

"Right!" Kevin yelled.

Kevin got Rolf's attention with a whistle and signaled with his hands that they were flanking and for them to give them cover fire. Rolf gave him the thumbs up and relayed the information to Jonny's group. Once everyone knew the plan they decided that once the flanking team began its attack, the others would give covering fire.

Eddy, Kevin, and Edd started their flank around the trash mound and behind the bandits. Everyone else opened up on the bandit's positions, forcing them to take cover. Some of the bandits stuck their guns up and blind fired but missed completely. The flanking squad made quick progress and before they knew it they were only twenty yards away from the group of bandits. They took cover behind a destroyed car before attacking.

"Alright, make sure you have a full magazine and on three we attack." Eddy whispered.

Edd and Kevin nodded and refilled their magazines. Suddenly, the sound of gunfire stopped on both sides.

"Shit! Everyone must have run out of ammo!" Eddy cursed.

"Then now's the time to strike!" Kevin yelled as he popped up and opened fire on the bandits.

Edd and Eddy followed suit and fired upon the bandits as well. Two more bandits fell dead with multiple bullet wounds to the back. The three with hand-to-hand weapons were already charging the other kids positions, as well as Carl.

Edd, Eddy, and Kevin ran and took over the cover previously owned by the bandits and quickly checked their weapons for extra ammo. Meanwhile, the others were fighting the bandits in hand-to-hand combat. Ed didn't have enough time to grab his club and nearly had his throat slashed by a combat knife. Luckily, he was able to pull out his police baton and blocked the attack. Ed then kicked the bandit in the stomach, causing him to fly back several feet. Ed quickly ran over to the hurt bandit and beat him in the face repeatedly, until he knew he was either dead or unconscious.

Rolf wielded his pitchfork and fought off a bandit armed with a baseball bat, who tried to smash Rolf's face in. Rolf blocked the blow with the broadside of his pitchfork and then twirled it around, before thrusting it into the man's stomach. The bandit grabbed the pitchfork as blood began to pour from his mouth. Rolf shoved it deeper into his stomach, before the man finally slumped over, dead. Rolf removed the pitchfork, which made a sickening squelching sound and caused more dark red blood to spurt out of the man's stomach. The man fell over and blood began to soak the dirt under him.

Carl and his last bandit began to retreat back to their old position, when they saw Edd, Eddy and Kevin standing in their way. Carl and his lackey took a step back, once they realized that they were surrounded. The lackey suddenly charged Eddy, who shot him in the face, causing blood to fly and splatter onto Carl's face and clothes. The man fell to the ground, as blood began to trickle out of the bullet hole in his forehead. Carl now stood alone and looked all around him at all of the kid's faces which were filled with pure hatred and anger.

"Give up old man!" Eddy ordered.

Carl looked around with a crazed look before screaming, "You'll never take me alive, you bastards!"

Suddenly, he pointed his gun at Eddy, who closed his eyes and heard the sound of a gunshot and then the sound of a loud thud. Eddy opened his eyes and saw Carl had a large bullet hole in his head but then realized that none of the others even had ammo, nor had Edd, Kevin, or himself fired their weapons.

They all looked around to see if they could find out where the shot came from, until they heard a voice cry out, "Hey! Up here!"

They all looked up and saw a man dressed in green camouflage and was armed with a beat up looking assault rifle with a folding skeleton stock. He also had a Scoped Colt Anaconda at his side. He walked down from the top of a trash mound and met the group face to face. He had a rough, brown beard, with some streaks of gray in it. His hair was also brown and came down to his shoulders and was very greasy and scraggly looking. His face was very rugged and worn looking, with several scars and he had deep set, brown eyes. He was rather tall, at about 6' 8" and was very strong looking.

"Dude! Holy shit man, you saved my life! Thank you!" Eddy yelled.

"Don't mention it kid, I've been hunting that guy and his gang for a few days now but it would seem that you guys got them before I did. Good job! And by the way, the name's John, John Barlow."

John stuck out his hand and Eddy grabbed it and shook it vigorously while saying, "The name's Eddy and these guys are my friends!"

Everyone else said hello to John and introduced themselves.

"So, where you kids heading?" John asked.

Everyone looked at each other but figured that since he had saved Eddy's life they could trust him.

"We're trying to get to Square Bot City." Edd answered.

"Square Bot City huh? I can take you there if you like; I need to go there for some business anyways." John offered.

"Well, we have a map but a guide would be a hell of a lot better!" Kevin said.

"Alright then, we should probably loot these guys then be on our-"

But before John could finish his thought, Nazz came sprinting to the others yelling, "Guys, I don't think Jimmy is going to last much longer!"

"Fuck! Come one guys let's hurry!" Eddy yelled.

Everybody, including John, ran back to where Jimmy was at. Jimmy was lying on a blanket, which had a large blood stain on it. He was breathing heavily and blood stained his mouth. There was a large pile of bloody pieces of cloth next to him and the cloth applied to his wound was soaked with blood. Sarah knelt next to Jimmy and started sobbing. She grabbed Jimmy's hand and he was barely able to grasp hers.

"S- Sarah… it… it hurts…" Jimmy whispered. He suddenly coughed up more blood and started to gasp for air.

Jimmy started to shake uncontrollably as his body went into shock and started to die. He started crying hysterically and hyperventilating and was crying out for his mom and dad. Sarah continued to cry and hold his hand as her friend died before her. John, Rolf, and Ed all held Jimmy down while Edd gave Jimmy some morphine which John had produced from his own personal med kit. Jimmy started to calm down and was deathly pale by now. His breathing soon became shallow and was a lot slower.

"Sarah… the pain is going away… but I can't… I can't see you…" Jimmy said softly.

His eyes closed altogether and his pulse was almost non-existent. He breathing began to fade, until finally it stopped altogether. Jimmy had died, making him the first one of the group to perish in the Wasteland. Sarah started to sob even harder and laid her head on Jimmy's bloody chest. Everyone was either crying as well or was quiet with a sad look on their face.

* * *

An hour after the battle, everyone returned to Rolf's farm for a proper burial and funeral. Rolf and John dug the grave in the backyard, next to the shed, while Eddy, Kevin, and Jonny looted the dead bandit's bodies. Sarah never left Jimmy's side the entire time and everyone else who didn't leave stayed by Sarah's side. Everyone decided that Edd should preside over the ceremony and give Jimmy his last rights. Once everyone was back from looting they began the funeral. Edd spoke about how Jimmy was a good young man and that he had died valiantly. After Edd's speech everyone else said a few words, before they put Jimmy's body in the ground. John made a wooden coffin, which he placed Jimmy in before lowering him into the earth. Everyone by this time was crying or was tearing up. One of their lifelong friends had just died right before their eyes, in one of the worst ways possible. He had died a death that he didn't deserve, especially at such a young age. Sarah was heartbroken and didn't say anything after they placed him in the ground and started to bury him. Nazz walked over and hugged her best friend. Sarah returned the embrace and started to cry again.

Edd sat underneath of the same charred tree that he sat under the day before. He was working on Eddy's gun in an attempt to get his mind off of the day's events. Edd couldn't help but think back to his own dad and his death. Edd started to tear up again and had to wipe his eyes with his sleeve. He sniffled a bit before returning to working on the gun.

John was talking with Rolf, Eddy, and Kevin at the campfire.

"You know, I can wait around a bit so you guys can recuperate before we leave." John offered.

"No, I think the best thing right now would be for us to leave this place, once and for all." Eddy said bitterly.

"We have all lost too much and this place just continues to haunt us with the memories…" Kevin added, thinking back to his mother.

"Rolf shall go tell the others to get ready to leave in an hour." Rolf said in a monotone voice, before getting up and announcing, "Everybody, we leave in an hour, so get your gear together!"

Everyone looked over at him before going to gather their things. Rolf sat back down and let out a long sigh.

"Well Rolf, let's start packing and redistributing weapons and ammo." Eddy said.

Rolf got up without responding, as well as Kevin and John.

They may have been able to obtain another 10mm Pistol, a Mauser C96, an assault rifle, a baseball bat, two combat knives, another .32 Pistol, and a Swiss army knife but it was at the cost of one of their own. They spent twenty minutes redistributing the weapons and ammo to everyone.

They didn't have a lot of ammo, so those who had pistol that took 10mm ammo only had four shots per pistol. Eddy divided his box of ammo with the other .32 Pistol, so each pistol had ten shots each. Kevin was only able to scrape together eleven shots for his assault rifle. Eddy was able to find fifty nails for Edd's Pressure Rifle and had two magazines that held twenty-five nails each. Edd still hadn't finished Eddy's Battery Gun but they were able to find plenty of marbles as ammo.

Ed armed himself with a 10mm Pistol, his giant club, a police baton and was wearing Rolf's Custom Armor and a set of shin guards.

Edd armed himself with a 10mm Pistol, police baton, Carl's Swiss army knife, and was wearing Rolf's Custom Armor.

Eddy armed himself with his dad's .32 Pistol, Edd's Pressure Rifle, the meat tenderizer, and was wearing Rolf's Custom Armor and a set of shin guards.

Kevin armed himself with the assault rifle, his custom sword, 10mm Pistol, and was wearing Rolf's Custom Armor and a set of shin guards.

Rolf armed himself with two 10mm Pistols, his pitchfork, a combat knife, and was wearing his own custom armor.

Jonny armed himself with a 10mm Pistol, his nail board, a combat knife and was wearing Rolf's Custom Armor.

Sarah armed herself with a 10mm Pistol, her spiked knuckles, baseball bat, and was wearing Rolf's Custom Armor.

Nazz armed herself with the Mauser C96, her hand wraps, nun-chucks, and was wearing Rolf's Custom Armor.

Lee armed herself with a 10mm Pistol, her nail bat, a police baton, and was wearing Rolf's Custom Armor.

May armed herself with a 10mm Pistol, her slingshot, a kitchen knife and was wearing Rolf's Custom Armor.

Marie armed herself with a .32 Pistol, her serrated knife with a sheath, a police baton, and was wearing Rolf's Custom Armor.

Once the group had gathered up all of their gear they all started off into the Wasteland, they all turned their heads back at least once, saying goodbye to their homes in Peach Creek, forever…


	8. Chapter 7: Square Bot City

**Chapter 7: Square Bot City**

John, Rolf, and Edd were all standing atop a small desert plateau, looking out over the vast, rugged Wasteland before them. The terrain looked treacherous and rocky and they knew it would be very easy to twist an ankle. The small, jagged rocks seemed to just go on for miles and they were too numerous to count. The group desperately needed a plan.

"Hmm, it doesn't look like there is anyway of going around this." John commented while rubbing his chin.

"Yeah, we'll just have to tell the others to be extra careful while we're crossing." Edd added.

"It seems to go on for a few miles… is Double-D Ed boy sure that this is the only way to get to this Square Bot City we seek?" Rolf asked.

"I'm not really sure; I mean the map isn't really that clear…" Edd said as he looked at the dilapidated map again.

"May I see that map please?" John asked.

"Sure, here you go." Edd said as he handed over the map.

John scrutinized the map and had a strange look on his face. He looked up at Edd then asked, "Where did you get this map from?"

Edd was confused then slowly said, "My father gave it to me before he… died."

John's face softened then said, "Oh, I'm sorry to hear about your dad kid."

"It's okay." Edd replied.

"Was he tall, dark goatee and hair, slightly tan?" John questioned.

Edd was caught off guard at first then replied, "Yeah, how did you know?"

"You're from Vault 117 aren't you?" John asked.

"Yes, how do you know all of this?" Edd questioned.

"I knew your dad kid. He used to come out here and scout the area. Wrote reports on the surface and what not. I met him one day out here and we became friends. I'd help him by giving him advice and information on the local area and he'd bring me supplies. I made him that map a month or so back so he could find his way around easier. He was a damn good man your father and I am truly sorry about your loss."

Edd was in awe at what he had heard. "But no one is allowed to leave the Vault. Ever!"

"Nah, not true. Your father told me that the Overseer chose him specifically for the job of scouting the surface. Your father was venting to me one day saying how the Overseer wanted some information so he could prove to the Vault that it was too dangerous so he could ensure that no one would ever leave. I guess he never told you any of this on account of that look you're giving me. I wouldn't be surprised if he was sworn to secrecy." John finished.

"I- I guess so. It's a lot to take in at once but then again it was so obvious. I had noted multiple times that my father had accumulated dust on his clothing, the fact that he was actually tan, his weird work schedule." Edd commented.

"Well it looks like he used that map a lot, it's pretty worn out. We could always back track I suppose…" John said but then noticed all of the Pipboy 3000's on everyone's wrists.

"The again, what about those fancy watches all of you seem to have? Don't they have some kind of GPS system or maps programmed onto it?"

Edd looked down at his Pipboy 3000 before saying "Honestly, I have personally never really messed with it that much, besides checking the time and date. But Eddy's job back at the Vault was to work on them, so maybe he knows a thing or two about how they work."

They all agreed and went back to the rest of the group, who were taking a break after the long hike from Peach Creek. Eddy was leaning against his pack with his eyes closed when he felt someone nudge him in the ribs.

"Ugh! Not now! Can't you see I'm trying to get some Z's here?" Eddy complained before opening his eyes and seeing John, Edd, and Rolf standing over him.

"Oh great, did I do something?" Eddy asked with an annoyed look on his face.

"No, not this time Eddy but we require your assistance." Edd said calmly.

Eddy got up slowly and brushed himself off before asking, "What do you need sock-head?"

Edd motioned for Eddy to follow him to the top of the plateau. Eddy did so and was stunned by the terrain before them.

"Uhhh, I really hope that our plan is to go around this crap sock head." Eddy said in a worried tone, not letting his eyes leave the terrain.

"Well, yes, that is the plan. However, without a more detailed map of the area we could easily get lost and never find Square Bot City. Which is why I was hoping that maybe you would be able to figure out if there is a GPS system or maps on our Pipboys so we can find a route around this mess."

Eddy scratched the back of his neck before turning to face Edd again.

"I'm pretty sure it has some form of mapping system on it; I mean this is the latest model of the Pipboy. I'm not really sure how to activate it though. I don't know, hmmm… get the others together and have them start tinkering with their own Pipboys. Maybe one of us will be able to figure it out…" Eddy said, as he started to mess with his own Pipboy 3000.

Edd, Rolf, and John returned to the rest of the kids, leaving Eddy at the top of the plateau, who was still messing with the Pipboy. The kids were all talking to each other when they heard Edd's voice. They looked and saw him standing atop a medium sized stone.

"Everyone, we have run into a small problem with the terrain. It's, well… too dangerous to cross, so to try and find a different route I need everyone to try and find either some sort of GPS or mapping system on our Pipboys." Edd said while pointing at his Pipboy. "The sooner the better because I don't know about you guys but I would rather be safe inside of a city than out on the plains exposed."

Everybody looked around before beginning to mess around with their own respective Pipboys.

After about twenty minutes of tinkering with their Pipboys Eddy was able to find the mapping system.

"Hey everyone, I think I figured it out!" Eddy shouted.

Everyone ran over to see and saw Eddy messing with some of the knobs on his Pipboy. They were all trying to get a good look at the small black and green screen which showed a map of the surrounding area. The map showed Eddy's location in the world with an arrow and also showed the rocky field before them.

"Here, let me take a look at it." Edd said.

Edd squeezed his way through the crowd and got to Eddy.

"What the hell? There's no Square Bot City on this map anywhere!" Eddy complained.

"Well Eddy, I don't think that it would pick up on a settlement. Here, let's use the map and see if maybe we can type in some coordinates." Edd said as he pulled the map out again.

Edd named off the coordinates and Eddy began copying them into his Pipboy's mapping system. Within seconds a small marker labeled "Square Bot City" popped up on the screen.

"Holy crap! That's awesome!" Eddy exclaimed.

"Hey, do you know the coordinates to Peach Creek, Vault 117, and the Junkyard?" Eddy asked.

Edd shrugged his shoulders before saying, "It shouldn't be that hard to figure out. Let me think for a second here…" Edd thought for a moment before spouting off more coordinates which Eddy quickly added in.

Soon three more locations popped up on the screen.

"This is so awesome!" Eddy yelled.

All of the kids now wanted to know how to work their own Pipboys. Eddy explained to them how to work it and before too much longer they were all programming in the places, even Ed understood how it worked!

Edd was able to figure out that the Pipboys could also tell the user the health of their different body parts, such as their legs, head, and arms, catalogue their gear and how much each item weighed as well as a total weight, their skills, stats, and any special perks about them.

"I have to admit this thing is pretty sweet!" Kevin said, admiring his own Pipboy.

"Yeah, who would have thought that it could do all of this!" Nazz exclaimed.

"Yeah, too bad buddy! Sorry you didn't get one." Jonny said to try and console his wooden pal.

"Yeah, too bad Jimmy missed out this…" Sarah said quietly to herself.

While the kids were marveling over the awesomeness of their Pipboys, Edd was planning out a new route to Square Bot City. It only took him a few seconds to find a safer way.

Looking up from his Pipboy Edd said, "Alright everyone, I was able to find a much safer route to our destination, so gather your gear and follow me."

"You heard the sock headed Ed boy! Now let us skedaddle to the Square City of Bot!" Rolf ordered.

Everyone followed the order without question and gathered up their gear. They soon began their new and much safer route to Square Bot City. The new route would certainly add on a few more hours and miles to their journey but it was better than having someone break an ankle or leg.

They continued walking around the Field of Treachery as they called it (and programmed into their Pipboys) until they finally found some flat, open ground again.

"Hey, I think we're heading towards Lemon Brook." Kevin said.

"How do you know?" Jonny asked.

"This place doesn't have to be in perfect condition for me to know that we're heading towards Lemon Brook. I've been this way at least a hundred times heading towards a game." Kevin responded.

"I think Kevin's right. Look, I think I can see a road over there in the distance." Nazz pointed out.

Everyone stopped by a large clump of boulders and looked out over the horizon. They all could see in the distance the outline of the road and a dilapidated billboard as well.

"We should head that way then, the road would make it easier for travel." Edd suggested.

"The only bad thing about the road is that if any raiders happen to have an ambush set up we'll get slaughtered." John said.

"John's right, we can't afford to lose another person to those, scum!" Sarah exclaimed.

"What if we sent a scouting party ahead instead?" Marie suggested.

"Well, if that's the case, then I'll go ahead and volunteer for it." John said.

"I'll go too." Eddy said.

"Me too! I want to go too!" Ed exclaimed.

"I think three is enough, best of luck to you guys and please, don't do anything that might get you killed." Edd implored.

"Don't worry kid; I'll keep your friends safe." John said reassuringly.

"Yeah sock head, chill out!" Eddy huffed, as he gathered up some gear.

* * *

The three scouting party members only brought what they thought they would need and left the rest behind with their friends.

Eddy was only bringing his dad's .32, all of his extra ammo with him and some water. Ed reluctantly left behind his giant club and brought his 10mm Pistol, police baton, and water. John brought his Chinese Assault Rifle, Scoped Colt Anaconda, med kit, and water. Each member of the party brought extra ammo with them just in case they got into a firefight. They bid their farewells and began walking towards the distant road. They were all silent on their way to the road and kept a sharp lookout for any danger. They were completely exposed on the plains heading towards the road after leaving the safety of the boulders where the rest of their team was hiding at. They also noted that there was absolutely no cover. Their only option would be to hug the ground and hope that their attackers were bad shots. They did however make it to the road without incident and were also able to read the billboard. It read "Welcome to Lemon Brook!" in huge hot pink letters. It was in pretty rough shape and was extremely worn, making it slightly difficult to make out a few of the letters.

They continued down the road, past the sign, and towards the town of Lemon Brook. The majority of the road was in awful condition. It was cracked and well-worn and in many places there were large craters and potholes. The lines were also hardly visible in some places but overall it was easier travel on than the desert. They continued to keep quiet and kept a low profile. John took point and Eddy covered the rear. On the sides of the road there were several large boulders, big enough to hide behind, making it a perfect ambush spot.

"This is so freaky feeling man!" Eddy said nervously.

"Yeah, you think this is creepy, try having to deal with stuff like this for well over twenty years of your life." John said while not letting his guard down.

"What do you mean?" Ed asked.

"I was in the Army Rangers prior to all of this and believe me, I have been in situations a lot worse than this. Just be glad that you haven't had to see the things that I've seen."

"Wow, I didn't know that, thank you for serving." Eddy said. "Could you possibly tell us why the world is like this? We were kind of young and didn't really know why this all was happening at the time."

John sighed to himself before saying "Well, alright sure, I can try my best to explain it all. You see… well… let's just say that things were pretty complicated at the time. I think we can all agree that the Russian invasion was inevitable. There had just been way too much tension for something not to happen. And those Japs, I guess they decided that they would try invading Alaska again, like they did back in the Second World War."

"The Japanese invaded Alaska during World War Two?" Eddy interrupted.

"Well, they did but they didn't, they invaded Dutch Harbor which is an island that's part of Alaska. Luckily though, we were able to push them back. This time around though, they had the upper hand. We just didn't see it coming and it was without warning, just like Pearl Harbor."

"But, why did the Russians invade?" Eddy asked.

"There are a lot of reasons why. One being they wanted our resources. Another was that they just didn't like us. And then there was talk about that the Russians caught some of our people attempting to abscond with some of their nuclear materials. But whatever the reason, it still happened and now there's no fixing it. I lost a lot of good friends during the war; I basically lost everyone you could say…"

John remained silent for a bit while Eddy and Ed took in all of the information.

"I still don't get why they had to go and nuke the shit out of everything! I mean what's the sense in doing that?" Eddy yelled angrily.

"Truthfully, I don't know either, why they did will always remain a mystery to us all. My guess would be that a lot of leaders cracked under the pressure they were receiving from their people but I'm really not sure." John answered.

Satisfied with the answer Eddy didn't say anything else and the group continued on in silence for a bit. They figured that by now they had walked at least a mile or two down the road and since no one had attacked them they turned around to head back but stopped abruptly after hearing some commotion.

They all quietly snuck over to the side of the road near some rocks and peeked over them to see what the noise was coming from. They saw no more than fifty yards away from them a group of four Raiders surrounding a black man and his young boy. From what they could see, the man appeared to be in either his late thirties or early forties. But, what stood out the most was his flaming, red, Mohawk.

"Damn Raiders!" John cursed to himself.

"We have to do something! We can't just leave them to their fate!" Eddy exclaimed.

"We must save them from the bad men!" Ed agreed.

"Yes I know but let's think of a plan first. Alright, well considering that we have the upper hand here with the element of surprise we might be able to pick at least one or two of them off before they even realize what's happening. I'm also banking on the idea that since the Raiders will be distracted at first that that guy will make a move and help take out another one. Okay, so each of us will pick a target to go for and please, try not to hit the two innocents!" John implored.

Ed and Eddy shook their heads and took aim with their weapons, along with John.

All four of the Raiders had guns on them and were in a circle surrounding their hostages with their guns pointed at them. One of the Raiders laughed evilly before saying, "I'm going to enjoy ripping the guts out of your kid!"

Evil laughter erupted from all of the other Raiders this time. Suddenly, there was the sound of gunfire and the Raider who had just threatened the man's son fell to the ground dead with a bullet hole in his head. Blood poured from his wound, soaking the desert sand underneath him. Another Raider was hit in the arm and leg and tried to limp away from the fight. The black man seeing his opportunity tackled the injured Raider, took his MP9 10mm SMG and shot him. The other two Raiders were busy trying to find cover and fire back at their attackers that they didn't notice that their captive was now armed. The man turned around and filled the other two Raiders back's with lead, killing them both. The man dropped his weapon and ran over to embrace his son, who was crying, and quietly assured him that everything was going to be okay. Ed, Eddy, and John came running up to the man from behind the rocks.

"You alright man?" John asked, looking over the father and son.

The man looked up from his son to the three armed men before him and replied, "Yeah, we're good. Thanks for the rescue John; I thought that we were goners for sure!"

"Don't mention it Henry, by the way and this is Ed and Eddy." John said pointing to the two boys before offering his hand.

Henry took John's hand and said, "The name's Henry Strak as you boys already know! And this is my son Ben."

Ben waved to them and didn't say anything. Fresh tears could still be seen in his eyes.

Eddy and Ed both had confused looks. "Wait you two know each other?" Eddy asked.

"Oh yeah sorry for not explaining but yes Henry and I have known each other for a while now. You kind of get to know people after you've been out here for a few years." John answered.

"Oh, that's cool. Do you guys live close by?" Eddy asked Henry.

"Yeah, we live in the old Gag Factory about a mile away. Those filthy Raider bastards snuck up on us while we were out searching for some food. But listen, it's not safe out here. Let me take you guys back to our place to rest for a bit." Henry offered.

"Well, you see, we have other people waiting-" John was saying until Henry interrupted him.

"Oh, come on John you guys don't have to stay long and it's the least I can do to pay you back for saving our lives." Henry said.

"Ohh! I remember the Gag Factory! Hey Eddy, maybe your brother is there!" Ed shouted.

"No, Ed, I'm pretty sure that my brother isn't living there." Eddy said, trying to keep himself from hitting Ed.

"Alright, fine, I guess for just a little while." John said.

"Excellent! Follow me!" Henry said.

The group followed Henry and his son back to the Lemon Brook Gag Factory. Eddy and Ed discovered that the outside had definitely gotten a lot worse from the last time they had been there and that the field of flowers that used to surround it had been turned into a bleak desert landscape. They entered the dark factory and found that it hadn't changed much on the inside, besides that a lot of the boxes had been moved around. It seemed that Henry had moved the boxes to form a fortress of sorts for both he and his son to live in. He had also layered the outside of it with sheets of metal and whatever else he could find to protect them from the radiation. There was a lit path of torches leading to the fort which they followed. They entered the fortress and were amazed that it was set up just like a home. Henry had made furniture out of scrap metal and wood, along with whatever else he could scavenge from the Wastes. They even had some lamps they used as lighting which they powered with a set of generators. It was all in all a nice little home and refuge from the harsh Wasteland.

"Nice place you got here!" Eddy complimented as he admired Henry's handiwork.

"Yeah, it's cool!" Ed said as he explored the small house.

"You've been rather productive since the last time I visited." John commented, also admiring Henry's craftsmanship.

"Yeah, I came across this nice stash so I decided to spruce the place up a bit. It was hard work but all in all it was worth it." Henry said reveling in his own work.

Ed walked over to Ben who was sitting in a chair in the corner of the room.

"Hello, my name is Ed!" Ed said cheerily as he offered Ben his hand.

Ben slowly reached out and shook Ed's hand. "Do you like comic books?" Ed asked pulling out a Grognak the Barbarian comic.

"What's a comic?" Ben asked. Ed gasped before saying, "You don't know what a comic book is? Here, let Uncle Ed show you!" Ed began reading the comic to Ben, who was soon smiling as he listened to Ed read about slaying demons and monsters.

Eddy, John and Henry looked at Ed and Ben.

Henry then said "You know it's been such a long time since I've seen him smile like that."

"Yeah, Ed may look like a scary hulking gorilla but deep down he's got a soft heart." Eddy said. Though, I wonder where he keeps all of these comics on him. I swear he probably carries at least ten of those stupid things on him!"

They all laughed before Eddy asked, "What did you do before shit hit the fan?"

"I was a police officer for Lemon Brook and let me tell you I was one busy man! The kids here were the worst when it came to drugs, violence and alcohol! Part of the reason why I became a cop was shortly after my son Ben was born my wife was killed as a result of gang violence. She was just at the wrong place at the wrong time. At that time I was just a mailman but there was something inside of me after her death that made me want to be a cop and dole out some judgment. So that's pretty much my story, the only problem though is that we are always under the threat of Raiders and with me getting along in the years, I just don't know how much longer I can hold them off. I mean I got really lucky today with you guys showing up but my luck can only last for so long…"

"You know, our group is heading to a town that is nearby. How about we go back and get our friends, you pack up your stuff, and when we get back we'll escort you to the town?" Eddy offered.

"Hell, might as well take you up on that offer. Thank you, I had always wanted to make the journey but was too afraid to attempt it. Wow, today must be my lucky day!" Henry exclaimed.

"Alright then Henry, we'll see you in a bit! Come on guys let's get back to the others before it starts getting too late." John said.

They all said their goodbyes before leaving then the group walked out of the factory and back into the Wastes. They didn't bother with looting the dead Raiders on the way back since they were short on time and knew that their friends were probably worried. They made good time and were soon arriving back at base camp.

"What took you guys so long?" Kevin asked angrily.

"Sorry, we ran into a bit of trouble but everything is good." John reassured.

"Well thank goodness! We were getting worried!" Nazz said.

"Actually, we found this guy and his son who were almost killed by Raiders had we not showed up. So we offered to take them to town." Eddy said.

"That was very nice of you guys, good job!" Edd praised.

"Yeah and I got to teach his son about comics!" Ed exclaimed.

"Well we best not keep them waiting. Come on everyone!" John ordered.

Everyone packed up their gear and before too much longer started making their way to the Lemon Brook Gag Factory. They moved quickly but stopped by the scene of the fight and quickly looted the Raiders of their weapons and ammo. They were able to acquire a Combat Shotgun with several shells, a MP9 10mm SMG with ammo, a Hunting Rifle with ammo, and another 10mm Pistol.

Before too much longer they were outside of the Gag Factory where they saw Henry and his son Ben standing there with their packs. Henry was packing it heavy when it came to weapons and was armed with a chainsaw, an assault rifle much like Kevin's and another pistol that the kids were unfamiliar with.

"What's that thing?" Jonny asked, pointing at the mysterious pistol.

"Oh, this is a prototype laser pistol that was being issued to both military and police forces near the time that the bombs fell. It's alright, I mean for a prototype at least." Henry answered.

"Interesting, I would have never thought that anyone was capable of making laser weapon technology." Edd commented.

"Hey double douche quit yapping and get moving!" Kevin ordered harshly.

"Hey Kevin, shut the hell up! I'm the only one who can push sock head around alright!" Eddy yelled.

"Whatever…" Kevin said as he walked away.

"Idiot." Eddy said to himself before moving out as well.

Edd sat there for a moment pondering what just happened. "_It's only a matter of time before the tension between those two fractures our group…"_After finishing his thought Edd joined the others.

The group now started to make their way towards Square Bot City but not before programming the Gag Factory into their Pipboys of course. John explained to the rest of the group how he and Henry met which put them more at ease with the two new strangers in their group. While they were walking towards the town Ed had decided to relieve Kevin of guarding the rear of the group. Ed cupped his hands around his eyes like he was using binoculars and scanned the rocks and desert around them. As he scanned across a small field of rocks he saw what looked like a face but just as it had seemed to appear it disappeared in a fraction of a second. Ed was taken back a bit by this and started shouting at the top of his lungs

"Hey guys! I saw a face! I saw a face!"

Everyone stopped and turned to face Ed who was still freaking out over this mysterious face that he was claiming to have seen.

"Ed, maybe you should lay off on the comics and gravy some?" Edd suggested.

"I don't know, I think Ed's eyebrow finally became too much for him to handle." Eddy mocked.

"No, really guys, I saw a face!" Ed continued to shout.

"Listen, I'm sure that whatever it is will leave us alone, unless it has a death wish that is." John reassured.

Everyone turned around and continued to walk, leaving Ed behind who was still looking at the rocks before he finally joined the others.

Edd was looking at his Pipboy, trying to figure out about how much longer it would be before they made it to town.

"Okay, we should hopefully be arriving to the town in perhaps fifteen to twenty minutes."

"Well shouldn't we be able to see it on the horizon at least?" Kevin asked.

"Hey kid, these towns aren't made of skyscrapers anymore. I mean the majority of them are made of scrap metal and tents these days. But yes, we should be able to see it quite soon." John said.

"All I know is that I haven't eaten all day, I'm starving!" Eddy complained.

"We ate, you guys didn't though." Marie taunted.

"Wait what? You guys ate without us?" Eddy yelled.

"Hey, it was either we ate or we revolted and stole all of the food for ourselves." Lee said.

"Yeah sorry guys, everyone was getting restless, but don't worry we'll eat as soon as we get to town." Edd reassured.

"Fine, whatever, and speaking of town is that it in the distance?" Eddy asked, pointing at what looked like a pile of sticks in the distance.

John covered his brow with his hand to block the sun before answering with, "Yep! That would be Square Bot City."

"Why the heck do they call it that anyways?" Sarah asked.

John responded with, "Well, I'm not expert on the town but I'm going to assume that it's because their leader is half man half robot. A Cyborg, if you will. Plus the town is kind of in the shape of a square, then again a lot of towns are like that."

"That's jacked up man." Kevin said.

"A Cyborg! Ed must touch, see, and talk to Cyborg!" Ed yelled.

"Oh yeah, you can touch him, that is if his bodyguards don't kill you first." John said.

"Why is he the way that he is?" Edd asked who seemed to be very intrigued.

"From what I've heard and this is coming from the locals who live there, he was an ex-Marine and got pretty torn up by an explosion. It was basically a miracle surgery to say the least. I even heard that some of his internal organs are made of metal!" John said.

"Very interesting, I mean people get replacement arms and legs that can be metal or robotic but organs! This is a scientific breakthrough!" Edd exclaimed.

"Only sock head would be geeking over something like this." Eddy teased.

"Are there any merchants in this town he-who-puts-a-telescope-on-his-pistol?" Rolf asked.

"I'm assuming that you are talking to me, but yes, they do have merchants, and believe me they have more caps than they need." John answered.

Everyone gave John a blank stare when he said the word "caps".

"Here, I'll be the one to ask the question all on our minds… what the hell are caps?" Marie asked.

"Yeah, I figured you guys wouldn't know what those are. Here, let me show you what I mean…" John dug around in his pocket and pulled out a metal bottle cap. "Yep, once all of the paper money was pretty much obliterated by the fires this is what we switched over to for currency. But trust me barter is definitely the way to go, these things aren't always easy to come by but can be handy in sealing a deal." John said as he pocketed his cap.

"This world never ceases to amaze me with its oddities and customs." Nazz said with a smile.

"You've only scratched the surface, just wait until you meet the local wildlife!" John said sarcastically.

"I don't even want to know." May said.

"Are there monsters for Ed to slay?"

Ed was basically in John's face when he asked the question and looked like he could hardly contain himself. John slowly backed away from Ed before saying, "Well, depends what you mean by monster but sure, there are monsters for you to slay out here, some worse than others."

Ed smiled from ear to ear at the thought of being just like his favorite barbarian, Grognak.

"I'm surprised that any wildlife even survived." Edd said.

"Trust me it has and it's bigger and freakier than ever." John responded.

The group was so caught up with talking that they hardly noticed that they were only a couple hundred yards away from the town. They could all now see the town clearly and John wasn't lying when he said that they make these things out of whatever they can find. The town was surrounded on all sides by a primitive defense consisting of burnt up trees, shrubs, scrap metal, rotten wood and anything else they could find. The wall stood about four feet high but in some places it was as low as two feet. The gateway itself was wide open, without any form of a door and was currently being protected by three armed guards, each with an assault rifle and belts of ammo draped over them. The guards all wore some form of armor, which consisted of a leather outfit overlaid with metal plates. They all wore dark sunglasses and two of the guards wore standard issued combat helmets while the other guard (who appeared to be in charge) didn't have a helmet. He was bald and had a dark brown goatee and looked tough.

John took the lead of the group and approached the guards, who he already seemed to know. He motioned for the rest of the group to stay back while he went up and started to converse with the lead guard.

After a few short minutes they shook hands and the lead guard announced, "Welcome to Square Bot City! Please enjoy your stay and don't do anything stupid or else you'll end up like those guys over there!" He said as he pointed to a hill that was about three-hundred yards away.

There were five gallows built upon the hill and each still had a criminal swaying in the wind. The group grimaced at the fates of the men and walked into the town cautiously.

"Harsh…" Eddy said quietly to himself as he walked into the town along with everyone else.

The inside of the town wasn't as bad as they had expected. The majority of the homes were tents but there were some made out of rusty sheet metal and rotten wood. The streets reminded them of an old Arabic marketplace. The many merchants were advertising their good by shouting while their buyers were trying their best to haggle for a better price. The streets were all in all very busy and surprisingly, full of life. This was the first time that the kids had ever seen a functioning town, let alone a large group of friendly people, whose goal in life wasn't to rip them to shreds and take their stuff. They were all in such awe of the place that they didn't notice Henry, Ben, and John walking off towards the marketplace. The kids ran to catch up and were soon immersed in this strange place that seemed to be completely oblivious of the world just outside their gates.


	9. Chapter 8: Organization

**Chapter 8: Organization**

There were stalls on both sides of them, each of which had a merchant or two running them as well as an assortment of goods strange and familiar. Eddy, Kevin, and Ed soon found a weapon merchant which they started to converse with.

"Hey, you buy weapons right?" Eddy asked.

The merchant was about Eddy's height, perhaps a bit shorter. He was plump, had tanned skin, and facial hair covered much of his face.

"Of course! You can find just about anything at Ticus and Sons Weapon Supply!" the merchant replied happily.

The three boys looked around before all asking the same question. "So, where are your sons then?"

"Well, one is hanging from the gallows, another was killed by a raider attack, and the other was eaten by rabid dogs! Are there any other questions? Because you're wasting my time otherwise and time is money in this town!" Ticus said without even a hint of sadness in his voice.

The three boys were stunned but figured he must be one of those hardcore merchant types and figured he was trustworthy enough to buy from.

"Yeah, we could use some weapons." Kevin said.

"Excellent! What're you looking for then?" Ticus asked.

"Hey, Ed! Go get the others real quick!" Eddy ordered.

Ed put on a serious face and saluted before returning to his normal happy face and ran off to gather up the others.

"Anyways, well we actually have a lot of extra weapons and gear that we are willing to trade for some more high-tech weaponry." Eddy said.

"I see, I see. Well, just show me what you got and I'll estimate a price for it all." Ticus said.

Eddy and Kevin began putting their extra weapons on the table when Ed returned with the others.

"Here they all are Eddy! Do I get a prize now?" Ed shouted.

"Yeah, your prize is that you might get a new weapon so help us unload this stuff!" Eddy shouted.

"Eddy, we can't trade all of our stuff for weapons! We need food too dude!" Nazz complained. "How about the girls and I go and trade for some food and just leave you guys to waste all of your valuable goods on weapons?" Nazz asked with her arms crossed.

"Sure, yeah, sounds good to me." Eddy said, and was currently enthralled by a Minigun.

"Boys will be boys I guess. Come on girls let's go!" Nazz ordered.

All of the guys continued to unload anything that they had to trade for the merchant to appraise.

Eddy was up first and was getting rid of whatever he could to try and get that Minigun. He had his meat tenderizer, the Pressure Rifle Edd gave him, his old disco ball, along with other junk that he had kept from his room, two 10mm Pistols, extra 10mm ammo, two kitchen knives, and a police baton. Eddy was already drooling thinking of holding the Minigun.

The merchant looked over the stuff and said "I'll give you 300 caps for it all."

"What? That's it! Come on this stuff is at least worth 350 caps!" Eddy complained.

"I'll give you the 350, if you trade me two bottles of water." Ticus said slyly.

Eddy dug through his pack and found two bottles of water. "Here's your stupid water! Now how about you just go ahead and give me that Minigun over there instead of the caps?" Eddy said as he leaned on the stand with a huge grin.

Ticus began to laugh hysterically before finally calming down to say, "You actually think that you could buy that for 350 caps? You're even crazier than you look but I tell you what kid, because you gave me a good laugh I'll knock a few caps off of any other weapon you might want!"

Edd was slightly disgusted at the fact that Eddy had just sold the Pressure Rifle that he had put so much work and effort into but that was alright because now Edd could just take Eddy's Battery Gun instead. Without anyone noticing Edd slipped away in search of parts for his new Battery Gun.

Eddy was mad at first that he couldn't get his Minigun but upon hearing the new deal it was enough to satisfy him.

"Fine, I guess I'll take that one over there." Eddy said pointing at a rugged looking rifle with a scope. "And some extra ammo too!" Eddy added.

Ticus began scratching his rugged beard before saying, "She may look rough but this is surprisingly the best looking DKS-501 I've ever seen before. But I'm willing to part with her so you got yourself a deal." Ticus said as he extended his hand which Eddy firmly grasped.

Eddy let out a cheer as Ticus handed over the rifle along with a box of twenty extra .308 bullets to go with it. "So, will that be all kid?" Eddy however was too busy admiring his new weapon to hear, so Ticus simply yelled, "Next!"

Kevin approached the stall next, with his tradable goods in hand. Kevin started placing goods on the counter. He placed the set of football armor, two hockey sticks, two police batons, a 10mm Pistol with ammo, and his sword that he made. "Alright, now tell me how much this shit is worth." Kevin said impatiently.

Ticus looked over Kevin's gear before saying, "I'd give you about 230 caps for it all. This stuff is cool but hardly worth anything." Ticus said.

"Fine with me, just give me ammo for this thing instead of caps." Kevin requested as he showed Ticus his assault rifle.

"Oh nice, you have yourself a nice R91 Assault Rifle there! You're going to need some 5.56mm ammo for this wonderful killing machine!"

Ticus turned around and grabbed five boxes of 5.56mm ammo for Kevin. "Here you go!"

"Thanks bro." Kevin said as he deposited the ammo in his pack.

"Next!" Ticus shouted.

Ed stumbled up to the counter while smiling stupidly and laughing.

"I can tell that you're a little slow so I'm going to help you out here a bit. You're going to place all of the items that you don't want any more on this counter, then I'll give you a price and then you get to choose something of mine in exchange. We clear?" Ticus said very slowly making sure to pronounce each word carefully.

"Yup! Got it!" Ed shouted while rummaging through his bag. Ed placed his 10mm Pistol, all of the extra ammo for it, and a police baton.

Ticus looked over the good before asking, "Is that it?"

"Yup and I want some more of these so I can fire this!" Ed said while holding up a shotgun shell and presenting the Combat Shotgun he got from when they saved Henry and Ben.

"Alright, I see well here take two boxes of shotgun shells for your Combat Shotgun and I'll take your stuff." Ticus said.

Ed happily grabbed the boxes of ammo and deposited them into his bag.

"Next!" Ticus yelled but this time a little more impatiently.

Rolf stepped up next and was a lot more prepared to get a better deal since he has a lot more experience dealing with merchants.

"Alright, what do you have stretch?" Ticus asked.

Rolf kept a stern face as he placed his two 10mm Pistols, all of his ammo for both, his combat knife, some scrap metal and tools he took from his home.

Ticus looked over the gear before saying "I'll give you 300 caps for it all."

"Sorry my good sir but Rolf would never allow to this for such a low price, 400 caps."

"Please kid, are you really going to try and barter with me?" Ticus said incredulously.

"Fine but I guess Rolf won't be able to tell you were you can find all sorts of useful equipment ripe for the plucking…"

"Like I'm going to believe that! I've hear that story a thousand times! What makes this time any different?" Ticus yelled.

"Because Rolf actually has a map to it, that's why!" Rolf said confidently as he showed Ticus the old map.

Ticus took the map and looked it over. He scrutinized it for a bit before saying, "Well, it does seem kind of convincing but I'm still not sure…"

"Very well then, Rolf also has other proof!" Rolf said as he showed Ticus the same map on his Pipboy 3000.

"Alright, alright, fine! I believe you but why would I want to go all the way down there anyways?" Ticus asked.

Rolf rummaged around in his bag until he found a small key to his house and shed. "This will grant you access to the house in Peach Creek that has a fence surrounding it and there is also a shed in the back. One cannot miss it. You will find an assortment of junk, tools and whatever else you may find of value. Rolf is telling the truth, now will you accept the deal?" Rolf said while holding the key out to Ticus.

Ticus rubbed his head before grabbing the key and map saying, "Fine! I'll accept your offer but if I find out that you double-crossed me you'll be hanging from those gallows!"

"Rolf can assure you that he isn't and Rolf shall only take 200 caps and the rest shall be ammunition for this Hunting Rifle." Rolf pulled out a beat up Hunting Rifle that was barely being held together with duct tape and wire.

Ticus examined the gun before determining which ammo to give Rolf. "Well, it looks like you got the .308 caliber version so here you go, eight boxes of ammo and 200 caps." Ticus handed over the boxes of ammo and a worn bag filled with caps.

"Rolf thanks you!"

"Yeah, whatever… next!"

"Oh boy Plank, that's us!" Jonny shouted.

"Damn it! Will this ever end?" Ticus yelled.

Jonny placed his 10mm Pistol, nail board, and combat knife up on the counter and said, "I just want as much ammo as I can get for this sweet gun!" Jonny yelled as he brandished his MP9 10mm SMG.

"So, you have an H&K MP9 10mm SMG huh? Fine, here take some ammo!" Ticus said as he basically threw a medium-sized box of ammo at Jonny.

"Sweet! Me either Plank, I can't wait to fire this baby!"

"Please tell me that that was the last one!" Ticus said, who was by now annoyed with the kids.

"Yeah, hey sock head it's your… wait a second, where the hell did Double-D go?" Eddy yelled as he looked around for his friend.

"Thank God!" Ticus yelled.

"He's probably looking around the market." Kevin suggested.

"Yeah, whatever, well come on everyone lets go see if we can find everyone else." Eddy said.

The kids moved away from Ticus's stall and back into the open streets of the market. Ticus's head dropped onto the counter as he heaved a heavy sigh of relief. Never had he come across a stranger group of people.

* * *

Edd was with the other guys for only a moment before he left to find parts for his new Battery Gun. He searched high and low for a spare parts vendor until he finally came across a rather odd looking shop. It was a small shack made completely of scrap metal and was on the outskirts of the marketplace. "Rosie's Supply" was sloppily painted on a crummy sign above the doorway. Edd shrugged his shoulders and walked inside.

"Uhhh, hello? Is anyone home?" Edd said timidly.

Edd had to squint to try and see through the darkness of the room but he thought he could see someone bent over looking at something on a workbench. Edd cautiously walked over towards the person and when he was about five feet from them said again, "Hello?"

The person's hand went over and flicked a switch on a small lamp before turning around. Edd could now see him a lot better except for his face which was covered with a gray welder's mask. He was also wearing a salmon colored t-shirt under some brown overalls that had seen their better days. Edd also noticed that his boots were in very good condition and that he had a rubber yellow glove covering his right hand. He also had a LeMat revolver at his side, which slightly intimidated Edd. He was very skinny man and just a tad bit shorter than Edd. He was completely bald despite the fact that he seemed to be in his thirties.

"Why hello there young fella! What can Rosie do fer ya?" Rosie said cheerily in his heavy southern accent.

"Uhhh… yes well, I was wondering if maybe you had some parts to help me complete this." Edd said as he pulled out the Battery Gun. "The batteries for one thing are not very powerful and then there are just a few more small parts I'm going to need to get it functioning properly."

Rosie took the gun from Edd and placed it gently on his workbench. Rosie first started with examining the batteries which were in pretty rough shape.

"Well fer one thing these batteries ain't that great to begin with. What ya need is one or two of these fission batteries…" Rosie said as he pulled down two small but heavy looking batteries.

Edd walked over to further examine the batteries. They were very simple looking but there was something about them that made them seem powerful. "Why are these batteries so much better than mine if I may ask?" Edd said as he examined them.

"First off these batteries you go here are junk in both quality and the fact that they are pretty much drained of energy. And these batteries are great because they can last fer centuries before they die and they are powerful. The military used em in their machines and robots as a power source." Rosie explained.

Edd was suddenly very fascinated with these fission batteries before him. "So, you think that one of these would be enough to power this weapon?"

"I think it would be more than enough kid but I tell you what, lemme take a gander at it and I'll tell you what parts I think you're going to need." Rosie offered.

"That sounds good to me Rosie but what about payment? I don't exactly have any caps but I do have some items that I would be willing to trade, if that's fine with you." Edd said.

"Just come back in an hour kid and we'll work out the details then." Rosie said.

"Alright, well it was nice meeting you and I'll see you in an hour! Thanks!" Edd called back as he walked out the front door and back into the streets.

* * *

The girls walked over to a stall that had a sign saying "Martha's Kitchen" written above it. Nazz approached the stall and met the owner and her daughter. The stall owner appeared to be in her late 40's. She was taller than most of the girls in the group and had her graying brown hair in a bun. She looked tired and her weary grey eyes showed that she was quite tired from working in the heat. Her daughter looked to be about Nazz's age, maybe a bit younger. She too had tan skin but she didn't wear her hair in a bun since it was already rather short and didn't quite come down to her chin. Unlike her mother, she had brown eyes that seemed to be full of life.

"Hello. What can I get for you fine young ladies?" Martha asked.

"Yes, we would like to trade for some food, water, and medical supplies if you have any. We prefer food that isn't going to go bad anytime soon" Nazz said.

"The food part shouldn't be a problem but if you want medical supplies I recommend going to go see Doc, who is also my husband. He's right down the road there." Martha said as she pointed to a tent with a medical symbol on the front.

"Well mom I'm sure we could part with our medical kit since dad is a doctor and always carries his doctor's bag around with him so I don't see the point in keeping it." Martha's daughter suggested as she pulled out a medical kit from under the stall counter.

"Well Liz, I guess that's true. Alright, I'm sure we can part with it then. Oh and be a dear and get some canned goods and water for these fine young ladies." Martha said as she took the medical kit from her daughter and placed it on the stall.

"Yes mother." Liz replied as she grabbed about ten cans from a shelf as well as six big bottles of water and placed them all on the counter.

"We don't exactly have any caps but we do have some equipment that we picked up that maybe you guys might be interested it." Nazz said as she showed Martha all of the extra weapons that the group had.

"Hmm… well we aren't exactly the violent type but the guards are always willing to buy new weapons, so that's good enough for me." Martha replied.

"Cool! Well let me show you what we have…" Nazz said as she laid out three 10mm Pistols, two kitchen knives, eight police batons and a baseball bat. Martha looked over the assortment of weapons before her and nodded her head in approval.

"This looks like a fair trade to me. Liz, get these young ladies a complimentary bag to put all of their supplies in." Martha said as she pointed to a box.

Liz walked over to the box and opened it up with a key she dug out of her pocket. She then pulled out a reusable cloth bag that many grocery stores used to give out to their customers to cut down on plastic and paper bags. It was in fine condition and certainly a rare commodity in Wasteland Earth.

"I remember when they first started to use these when I was a kid!" Sarah exclaimed.

"Thank you very much Martha! I'll remember your kindness and I hope to return it to you someday!" Nazz thanked.

"Don't mention it and come back anytime now!" Martha shouted to the girls as they departed from her stand and back into the streets to find the rest of their friends.

* * *

The boys were still wandering the dirty market streets in search of the girls and Double-D when they ran into Edd who was walking out of Rosie's shop.

"Hey! Double-D! We're over here!" Eddy shouted out over the market.

Edd immediately looked in the direction of the all too familiar voice and made his way over to his friends. He noticed that their packs were much lighter and that some of them ever had new weapons.

"Hello fellows. What did you all get?" Edd asked.

"Well we have all of the weapons and ammo that we need if that's what you mean." Kevin answered.

"Yeah, check out this bad boy!" Eddy bragged as he showed Edd his new Sniper Rifle.

"That's nice Eddy. But do you guys know where our female counterparts are at or where John and Henry went? I haven't seen any of them since we first entered the town."

"Well the girls went for food and I have no idea where John and Henry are." Eddy answered.

"Hey! Plank knows where the girls are!" Jonny yelled.

Everyone sighed and then Eddy asked "Okay, I'll bite. So Plank, where are they?"

The piece of wood simply smiled at Eddy in silence until Nazz's voice broke the silence. Eddy as well as the rest of the guys looked up and saw Nazz and the rest of the girls.

"Wow, I guess Plank was actually right for once… so Nazz what did you girls get?" Eddy asked.

"Well, we got a lot of canned foods and water. Plus, they even traded us a medical kit!" Nazz answered as the other girls showed them the cans, water, and medical kit.

"That's great! You can't have too many first aid kits. Here let me have a look." Edd said as he looked at the medical kit, which contained bandages, gauze, alcohol wipes, a pair of rubber gloves, some tape, and some anti-bacterial cream.

"Rolf thinks that we should take inventory of our supplies, weapons, and ammo. As well as how many of these… how do you say? Caps? That our group has."

"Sounds like a plan. I wonder if there is anywhere to stay at in this town…" Edd said as he began looking for an inn.

"There!" Ed yelled as he pointed towards a sign that read "Rocco's Rock Hard Beds and Beer"

"That place sounds great to me!" Eddy yelled.

"Ahem. Rock Hard Beds" doesn't sound too appealing if you ask me." Nazz said.

"Yeah! And what if the place is crawling with rats or bugs?" Sarah added.

"How about we just check the place out and if it suits our needs then we'll stay. It's better than standing around here doing nothing." Kevin said.

With that last statement the group ended their bickering and made their way towards the inn which was made mostly out of rusty sheet metal. The sign was painted rather sloppily and from the outside one could smell alcohol and cigarette smoke. They entered and it was much like an old Western saloon. Men were gathered in the corners playing a card game while the rest were drinking at the bar. A few hookers were also entertaining a group of men. There were also a few scattered tables throughout the bar as well. The kids found a large table near the corner and made their way there. Most of the bar occupants stared at them with suspicion but didn't give them any trouble. They settled down at their table and before long a young barmaid was welcoming them.

"Hello! My name is Sandra! Is there anything that I can get you guys? Maybe some food or a beer?"

Sandra stood about 5' 8" and appeared to be in her early 20's. She was also rather skinny. She had her brown hair up in a bun which brought out her dark brown eyes. Her face was smooth and very radiant despite living in a desert environment. She was a very pretty girl and quickly caught the eye of most of the guys at the table, especially Eddy.

"Hey there sweet thang! How's about I buy both of us a beer and we can go share that table over there in the corner and get to know each other a little better?" Eddy said as he cracked a smile and winked at her seductively.

Sandra sighed as if this happened to her daily and replied, "So a beer? Is that it?"

Eddy was a bit crushed by Sandra's rejection but quickly recovered. All of the other kids gave Sandra their orders and after writing it all down she walked back to the bar to get their drinks. Kevin, Eddy, Lee, and Marie were the only ones who got alcoholic drinks while the rest of the kids got some water. The kids were having some light conversation when Sandra returned with their drinks.

"That will be 85 caps please. Will that be all for you guys?" Sandra asked.

"I think this will suffice. Thank you very much Sandra!" Edd said as he paid Sandra.

"Don't mention it. Just whistle if you need anything else." Sandra said as she walked over to another table of guests who just walked in.

"Well everybody I want to congratulate us all today. I think we did an excellent job of getting everything that we needed for a good deal!" Edd applauded.

"I think we should go ahead and inventory all of our supplies so we can ration them out." Nazz suggested.

Everyone unloaded all of the food and water from their packs and laid it out on the table. They had a lot of non-perishable goods and plenty of water for about twenty days. Since they were able to unload a lot of the weapons that they didn't need it gave them more room to carry the extra food.

"Hey what do you guys think we should do with the three gallons of gas and the car battery that we found back at the Cul-De-Sac?" Kevin asked.

"Well we could either trade it for more food and water or save them for later." Edd said.

"Or… we could trade it for that badass Minigun that that one dude had!" Eddy suggested.

Everyone just shook their heads in disagreement. "Sorry Eddy. Maybe the next town we go to will have one for cheaper. But I did meet a nice old man today so we could also trade it for him to give all of our weapons a good tune up." Edd said.

"That sounds like a good plan Double-D Ed boy. Rolf shall also give up the rest of his caps so that we can buy extra food and water for our journey." Rolf said as he took out the rest of his caps that weren't used for buying drinks.

"Nazz, how about you and the girls take the caps and go get some more supplies and the rest of us will go and get our weapons repaired. I don't think that you will need your weapons since this town is pretty safe but please stay safe." Edd implored as the girls handed the guys their weapons.

"Relax Double-D; I'm sure that we'll be okay." Nazz giggled.

"Yeah jeez sock head no need to freak out I mean you remember what happened to those guys on the gallows." Eddy reminded.

"Yes, well that is comforting at least." Edd said.

With that the kids got up and walked out of the bar and back into the streets. The two groups went their separate ways and were all the while still wondering where their other two companions John and Henry, had went to.

* * *

There was a building on the far side of the town that was surrounded by sandbag barricades with each being manned by a small squad of heavily armed mercenaries as well as some low stone walls. There was also a heavy machine gun nest on the roof of the building. A sniper tower with a well-trained sniper and spotter were also present, providing a bird's eye view of the city and complex. The building itself was by far the largest out of all of the buildings in Square Bot City. It was also made out rusty sheet metal, wood, and stone. It was two stories tall and structurally solid. Inside, there were more guards patrolling the hallways as well as some surveillance cameras. And Unbeknownst to the majority of the inhabitants of the town (besides the guards) there was a secret underground chamber deep beneath the city. There were a group of about eight men sitting at a table, as well as four guards to guard the only door; two on the outside and two on the inside. The room wasn't well lit, making it hard to make out the men's faces. However, there were two figures that could be made out easily. John Barlow and Henry Strak were at the front of the room talking with a third figure.

"Listen they may only be kids but I'm telling you they have some potential! They took out Carl's gang by themselves. And yes I know that there are bigger gangs out there that are even worse but still it was only their second day out here! John pleaded to the third, undistinguishable man.

"Yeah, and two of them along with John saved my son and I from some of Kril's thugs today!" Henry added.

The room was silent for a few minutes before the sounds of mechanical movement could be heard. The third figure began walking away from John and Henry. His step was very robotic and smooth, almost slow but very powerful. He abruptly stopped and slowly turned to face the two men again. A close up of his face revealed that one side of his face was completely made of metal while the other was human flesh. The metal side of his face looked like a metal skull while his human side was gruff and aged looking. His mouth was always slightly barred, revealing his metal teeth. The eye on the metal side of his face was metal with a red dot in the center. He was completely devoid of any hair on his face or head. As he stared down the two men with his robotic eye (which had a built in targeting system, taking vital sign readings, and could see in infrared) he could see as they both flinched under his gaze.

"Bring them to me." He ordered in a raspy, artificial, robotic voice. His voice was cold and commanding.

"Yes sir!" John said as both he and Henry saluted the Cyborg before exiting the room.

After they had both left one of the men sitting at the table asked, "Are you sure that these children will be able to help us?"

The Cyborg without even looking simply said, "I guess we're about to find out."


	10. Chapter 9 What Makes Us So Special Again

**Chapter 9: So What Makes Us so Special Again?**

The guys were making their way back to Rosie's shop when Edd spotted several armed figures roaming the dirty streets, interrogating several of the townspeople. They were armed with assault rifles and were throwing the arms about as they questioned their suspect. One of the people being interrogated was the merchant the guys had just done business with just a not even an hour ago. Edd was starting to get an eerie feeling about the whole situation while the rest of the guys continued on in their idle chatter.

"Hey fellows lets go this way, I think it will get us there quicker." Edd suggested as he turned down a scummy alleyway.

The rest of the guys simply shrugged their shoulders and followed Edd, still continuing to talk_. "I wonder if the presence of those guards has anything to do with us."_ Edd thought to himself. Soon they were back out into the streets and could see the Rosie's crudely drawn sign in the distance. Seeing that they were almost to their destination Eddy said, "Hey guys! I bet I can make it to the store first!" and with that being said Eddy started sprinting towards Rosie's Shop, soon followed by Ed, Kevin, Jonny, and Rolf. Edd decided to walk instead. Kevin easily beat Eddy to the shop but not before Jonny swooped in out of nowhere and took the gold.

"Wahoo! That was a blast huh Plank?" Jonny shouted.

"Yeah, whatever melon head, you win this time!" Eddy yelled.

"Good race guys!" Ed added.

"Ehh, you dorks aren't half bad yourselves but I think we all know that if I were actually trying that I would have won hands down!" Kevin said while flexing.

Edd interrupted Eddy just as he was about to rebut Kevin's statement. "Well guys get your weapons out and ready so we can get this done quickly. We need to get moving soon and I would rather not have to stay the night in this town…"

"Jeez Double-D! What's got you so tense?" Eddy complained.

"I don't know but I saw some guards in the streets interrogating several of the people in the streets and one of them looked like the merchant you did business with earlier today." Edd replied.

"Well it can't be anything too serious; I mean we haven't done anything wrong." Kevin added.

"What?" Ed said stupidly as if he had just snapped out of trance.

"I know but it was still rather disturbing. So the sooner we finish this and find the girls the better. I don't really want to stick around and see if they do anything." Edd said as he knocked on the rusty shop door.

As soon as Edd finished knocking twice the door swung open and Rosie was standing before the group in his normal attire. The other guys at first were at first taken back a bit by the strangeness of the fellow before them but Edd assured them that he was cool and they relaxed.

"Why howdy there! It looks like ya'll brought back a crowd for good Ole Rosie!" Rosie commented in his thick Southern accent. "You're here for that gun thingy aren't cha? Well I got in finished if ya'll want to take a look. She's a beaut if I do say so myself!"

"Thanks Rosie, I would like to take a look at how it turned out but we also were wondering if maybe you could do a quick tune-up for our weapons as well? We have caps and supplies we're willing to trade to compensate for your services." Edd said.

"Ahh shucks! I tell you what, I'll give ya'll the family discount! Rosie said cheerily.

"Thanks man!" Kevin replied.

"Yeah thanks dude!" Eddy also replied.

"Don't mention it! Now follow me." Rosie said as he let them into the shop.

It was still as dark and rusty as Edd had left it from earlier today but now it seemed to be a much more pleasant place. The happiness in the air allowed Edd to relax and let his guard down just a bit and the others seemed to feeling the same thing as well. They walked over to the work bench and found Edd's Battery Gun sitting on Rosie's dirty workbench. It was in much better shape than what Edd has left it in. The wooden parts were much shinier as if they had been polished vigorously and the overall rustiness of it also seemed to have dissipated. Edd walked up and shouldered the weapons which had a good overall weight to it and wasn't to front or back heavy; it was just perfect for Edd.

"Well how does she work?" Edd asked as he continued to marvel at the beauty of the weapon.

"Why don't you find out?" Rosie said as he pointed to a dilapidated wooden target about fifteen feet away with a crudely drawn bull's-eye on it. Edd shifted his weight towards the target and took careful aim. Edd drew in a deep breath and slowly let it out and as he was about to pull the trigger Eddy shouted, "Damn it Double-D the targets only a feet away! Just shoot the fucking thing already!"

Edd was frightened by Eddy's shrill voice and jerked the trigger, shooting out a quarter-sized marble at around sixty miles per hour. The marble easily punctured the thin, rusted wall of Rosie's shop and could be heard bouncing off of metallic objects in the alley just outside where the marble penetrated the wall.

"Dude that thing is sweet!" Eddy yelled.

"If that thing can go through metal just imagine what it would do to someone's head?" Kevin shouted.

"Far out! Huh Plank?" Jonny exclaimed.

"Do it again Double-D!" Ed begged.

Rosie walked over to the hole in his wall and scratched the top of his bald head. "Hmm, well looks like it works pretty darn good!" Rosie exclaimed, as cheery as usual, despite there being a hole in his wall.

Edd marveled at the power of his new weapons but remorse soon swept over him like a tidal wave. "I'm so sorry Rosie! I'll pay recompense for putting the hole in your wall!" Edd began digging in his bag for some caps when Rosie said, "Don't worry about it; just be careful with that thing though, it's not a toy."

Edd shook his head in agreement before asking "Well are you ready to take a look at our weapons now?"

"Sure! Show me what ya'll got for me!" Rosie exclaimed.

* * *

Nazz led the girls back to Martha's Kitchen to purchase more supplies when they noticed that the streets were strangely quiet and very much devoid of life. The other girls noticed this too and began to wish that the boys hadn't taken their weapons. They walked on in silence and vigilantly kept watch and made sure that they were not being followed. They were able to reach Martha's without incident but noticed that a dirty brown cloth covered her stand and there was a wooden board with the word "Closed" crudely written in red paint. Now the girls were on high alert and when they turned around to face the streets again they were met by six men. Each was well over six feet tall and muscular, as well as armed with automatic weapons and donned in military uniforms. Nazz backed up a little bit, intimidated by the men's presence.

"Excuse me but are you guys looking for someone?" Marie asked sharply.

"Yeah, cuz if you aren't then please back off some!" Lee said vehemently.

"Shut up!" ordered one of the men, "Now listen hear, you all are coming with us!"

"Says who?" Sarah asked angrily.

"Says me you little brat!" another one of the men answered.

"Oh yeah? And what if we say no?" May asked, annoyed.

"Then you're little boyfriends will just have to die I guess…" one of the men answered slyly.

"What have you done with them?" Nazz yelled.

"If you come with us quietly then you won't have to worry about what we will do to them." The first guard answered.

The girls exchanged nervous glances before slowly walking over to the men and falling into line. The men surrounded them on all sides and began leading them back to their Headquarters.

"You ladies made the right choice. Our Master will be most pleased." The first guard said.

A sick feeling formed in all the girl's stomachs as they wondered who this "Master" was. They were lead through the streets until they were standing outside of a large building surrounded by men, barricades, as well as several armored cars with machine gun turrets mounted on the top. They also noticed a sniper in the tower above them checking them out through his scope. Disgusted by the peeping Tom sniper they continued to walk through the courtyard and into the large compound in the middle; the place they assumed to be the men's base of operation as well as the dwelling place for their "Master". They were lead and inside and were most pleased to find John and Henry standing in the middle of the large room.

"Thank God you girls are alright!" John exclaimed as he ran up to meet them, followed by Henry. "You men are free to go now." John said sternly to the six men who saluted and walked back outside.

"What's going on John? I need some answers now!" Nazz ordered.

"I am very sorry about all of this but I can assure you that everything will become quite clear in just a minute here. Now girls you have to trust me on this one. The leader of Square Bot City wishes to have a word with you guys about something very important. However, we're still waiting for the other team to arrive with the guys so until then we'll just have to sit tight and wait for their arrival. I can try to answer some of your questions until they arrive if you wish?" John said.

The girls all had disapproving looks on their faces but decided to just play along with it. They were slightly distracted however by the overall quality of the room they were in. Unlike all of the other buildings they had been in, this one wasn't falling apart and was made of the finest wood, metal, brick and other materials. The room was also well-lit by a chandelier and there were stairs leading to another level, which were covered in a dusty red carpet. There were also several hallways leading deeper into the compound.

Nazz quickly snapped out of her trance and asked, "Why would the leader want to speak to us? We're just a bunch of kids who escaped a Vault?"

"Well, you see-" John was about to answer until the front doors burst open and the sound of disgruntled yelling filled the air. Several men like the ones who had abducted the girls filed, each with one of the guys in their arms trying to break free. The guards had little trouble subduing the guys and were soon standing at the ready as they waited for their new orders.

"What the fuck? Let go of me you prick!" Eddy ranted as he fruitlessly tried to escape his captor's mighty grip.

"Yeah what the hell is going on here man?" Kevin added in, also trying to escape.

"You guys can let them go now." John ordered and the men immediately released the guys and left the building.

Eddy brushed himself off before yelling "What is going on here? Why were we abducted and brought here?"

"Listen Eddy, I need you to calm down a bit and I promise that it will all make sense soon." John implored.

Eddy's face turned from beet red back to its normal color but he still had a scowl on his face.

"Well, if you don't mind me asking have we done something illegal or wrong for us to have been absconded and carried off to this place?" Edd asked.

"Like I said, it will all be made clear very soon. Now please follow me. This way." John answered.

The kids all quickly fell in behind John and Henry and followed them down one of the many hallways. They walked for a good twenty yards before they came to a hidden door which led them deeper underground. They were all silent along the way as they tried to figure out what was going on and why the leader wanted to see them so badly. They stopped outside of a large metal door shaped similar to the cog-like door of their Vault, only smaller. Two muscular men armed with Miniguns and donned in military grade Kevlar Armor guarded the door, with fierce looks on their faces.

"This way." John said as he pulled a lever that opened the door. A buzzer sounded as the pressure holding the cog was released, causing it to roll out of the way. The guards stepped out their way and let the group through the open door and into the underground headquarters. It was surprisingly clean in the underground room, as the floors and walls were made of the finest metal available. Guards and other important looking people walked the metallic hallways, which resounded with each step they took. John and Henry continued to lead the group through the somewhat crowded hallways to another door guarded by two more men donned in a similar fashion as the first two they met. Henry flashed some sort of card which prompted one of the guards to punch in a code on the door, opening it. Henry nodded at the guards as they all walked into a dark conference room.

The poorly lit room made it hard to see but several individuals could be made out through the darkness. The resounding sound of a metallic step caught the group's attention but all they could see through the gloom was a piercing red eye staring straight at them.

"So, you've finally arrived." The red-eyed figure said robotically. "I have been waiting to speak with you all for some time now."

"Yeah, and we've been waiting to find out who the hell you are!" Eddy yelled.

"Watch your tongue you insolent child! You don't know who you're speaking to!" reprimanded one of the other men in the room.

"There is no need to scold them, they're just confused." The robotic figure responded. He slowly made his way towards the group of kids until he was less than eight feet away from them. By now their eyes had adjusted to the darkness and they could see now the condition of his body. This was the leader of Square Bot City standing before them.

"Hello sir, my name is Eddward and I was wondering if you would be so kind to answer a few questions and concerns of ours?" Edd asked politely.

"Yeah, a little explanation for all of this would be nice." Nazz added.

"Of course, of course. Ask away and I will be sure to answer all of your questions to the best of my knowledge and ability." the Cyborg said.

Eddy was the first to step up, "First off, who the hell are you? And secondly, why are we so special then that you'd go out of your way to capture us? Answer me that!"

The Cyborg was unfazed by Eddy's outburst and calmly answered with, "You can call me Alloy if you wish. And you're special because you all show great potential. You're obviously not easily fazed by what the Wasteland has to throw at you. Also, not that I fully believe this myself, but I have heard of a prophecy says that a group twelve of Vault Dwellers will save the Wastes. How they will sacrifice much to bring peace and prosperity back to the Wasteland."

The whole room went silent after Alloy finished speaking the Prophecy. None of them knew what to think or say after hearing that. It sounded eerily familiar and they wondered themselves whether they should believe it or call it a hoax. Edd worked up the courage to say, "Are you saying that there is a prophecy about us, even before we emerged from our Vault?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying." Alloy replied.

"This can't be for real…" Nazz said.

"We're not heroes! We weren't destined to save the Wastes! We're just trying to survive like everyone else in this fucked up world!" Eddy yelled.

"You hear that buddy? We're going to save the world!" Jonny exclaimed.

"Save the world! Crush all monsters!" Ed yelled.

Alloy paused before saying, "Listen, I know that you guys are all confused, and perhaps a few of you are even deranged but I have plans for you all if you wish to hear them."

"Well, what are your plans Mr. Alloy?" Edd asked curiously.

"As you all have noticed I run a pretty tight security in this town but also in much of the surrounding area. Your friends John Barlow and Henry Strak are agents of mine who see to it that the different sectors in the surrounding region are taken care of. So, if any trouble arises, such as Raiders, Super Mutants, hostile wildlife, etc., they're the ones who see to it that it is taken care of. They also act as scouts for finding potential new sites for colonies. After a few weeks all of my agents will report back to me all of the information they have acquired. I am asking to see if any of you are willing to join my cause. After John told me of how you took on Carl's Gang I was astounded. I had lost over ten men trying to eradicate them. Of course by the time you guys reached him I'm sure he had lost most of his gang but he was still very dangerous regardless. I also know that you guys are searching for a new home after being forced out of your Vault. I am offering you a home, a job, and a chance to survive. So please take some time to consider my offer and tell me of your answer when you are done deciding." Alloy finished.

"Yes, please give us a moment." Edd said politely before turning to face the rest of the group.

They gathered up into a huddle and began whispering plans as to what they should do.

"You know I think we can trust this dude. I mean if John and Henry are agents for this guy and we trust them, I think we can trust Alloy." Edd reasoned.

"Yeah I mean sure he's kind of weird and all but he seems to be fighting for a good cause, so that's enough to convince me." Kevin added.

"If it means that nobody else has to suffer the loss of a loved one then count me in too!" Sarah said.

"Well I guess the better question is… are there any objections to joining Alloy?" Nazz asked, as she looked at each of the group members.

"I don't know guys; I mean this is just like the Vault all over again. I mean sure we get paid and maybe receive better food and all but we're just selling ourselves out again to another person. What if this guys is just like the Overseer and plus you guys heard the Prophecy; I mean I may have had my doubts at first but what if we are a part of this? We could be famous throughout the Wastes! And plus why shut ourselves when we have an entire Wasteland to explore?" Eddy finished.

"Ed boy, this isn't about riches and glory. This is about finding a new home." Rolf said.

"You know Plank and I are with Eddy, there are still a lot of adventures out there just ripe for the picking!" Jonny added.

"Yeah adventure! Ed wants to go on an adventure and kill monsters and bad guys!"

"Hell. That sounds pretty fun! I think I'll tag along with you guys!" Marie said excitedly.

"What? No Eddy! If you do this you'll fracture the group! Strength in numbers, remember?" Edd exclaimed.

"Yeah guys it's dangerous out there on your own! Think of the group!" Nazz added.

"No way Marie! You're not going out there by yourself!" Lee ordered.

"Yeah Marie!" May added.

"Guys! Listen! It's the four of us! We're not as weak as you think we are! I know that we can survive out there and besides we're all old enough to make our own decisions now." Eddy explained.

"Ed! There is no way that I am going to let you do this!" Sarah roared as Ed cowered in fear before her.

"Please Sarah! I just want to slay monsters! Ed will be good, I promise!" Ed pleaded as he got on his knees.

"Oh come on guys, I say we let dorky go out on his own. Maybe this will be good for everyone." Kevin said.

"Perhaps the flat-headed Ed boy is right. He has reached manhood and can make his own decisions. While Rolf does not fully agree with this Rolf is willing to accept the Ed boy and company's departure. If you are going to leave, you have Rolf's blessing." Rolf concluded sadly.

Edd was about to argue more against the idea of them leaving but faltered. A few moments later he said, "Well, I guess we can't really stop you guys, I mean it wouldn't be right if you tried to persuade you otherwise. I'm not really for this idea of splitting the group up but who knows, maybe some good will come of this. But if this is going to be goodbye then I want to thank you four for being really great friends and I hope to see you all again someday soon! Please at least try and visit every once and awhile" Tears were beginning to form in Edd's eyes.

"Yeah, we're really going to miss you guys, but it's your choice! Seriously, please do try and visit though and stay safe!" Nazz said with tears in her eyes.

Kevin walked up to Eddy and put a hand on his shoulder while saying, "Well dorky, I'm surprised that you've made it this far but I figure that you should be able to handle yourself out there in the "big bad Wastes". I'll always be one step (as well as a foot taller) ahead of you in life so don't forget that. And we'll always be rivals but I guess I'll see ya around then douche." _"Perfect, two dorks down and one more to go!"_ Kevin thought.

"I'm not quite sure how to take that but I guess thanks anyways Kev." Eddy replied.

"Now Ed you had better take care of yourself okay! Don't get hurt and promise me that you will come back in at least one piece!" Sarah ordered.

"Yes baby sister." Ed answered.

Lee, May, and Marie separated into their group. Lee and May both had their hands on Marie's shoulders as they said their goodbyes.

"Now Marie as your older sister I want you to try and be careful out there and look after Eddy for me as well." Lee said.

"Yeah, and make sure my big Ed doesn't get hurt too badly either!" May added.

"Alright fine but you two need to look after Edd for me then, alright?" Marie said as she extended both her hands.

"Agreed!" May and Lee said simultaneously as they shook Marie's hands.

Rolf gathered up the four members that were leaving and said, "Now remember you four, the moss will always be on the North side of the tree, don't leave your chickens out in the rain, and keep your wits about you. Rolf does not want to hear of any of your demises or else Rolf shall be very upset!"

The four looked at each other in confusion before all nodding together, still confused by the meaning of Rolf's advice. After the group had wished their goodbyes they faced Alloy again.

"Well sir it has been decided that four of us will be leaving here while the rest stay here to work for you." Edd said.

"I won't try and change your minds but I do wish you luck in your future endeavors. If you four need any supplies I will see what I can spare for you all." Alloy offered.

"Yeah that would be pretty sweet." Eddy said.

"Very good; please everyone meet me at the front gate so we can wish them goodbye one more time before they leave." Alloy said.

* * *

The kids, Alloy, John, Henry, and Ben all made their way out of the Headquarters and back towards Square Bot City's front gate. Alloy had his men bring them extra water, food, ammo, as well as some hiking boots. After loading up their packs with all of the supplies they could carry they wished their goodbyes to each other one last time.

"Hey, you guys try not to get into too much trouble alright? Especially you Eddy because I might not be there next time to save you." John said.

"Yes, please try not to do anything too stupid while you're out there." Edd implored.

"Alright! Jeez! You guys are just like my mother, except worse, but yes I promise to try and be safe." Eddy huffed. "Come on guys we should probably get moving so we can make camp before it gets too late." Eddy ordered.

The group waved goodbye and walked out into the desert wastes while their friends stayed at the gate and waved until their dots disappeared into the darkening horizon. It was starting to get late and everyone was very tired and hungry from the day's events. They returned to Rocco's where they ordered a hot meal (On the house) and rented some beds (For half-price… greedy bastard).

As Edd got into bed to sleep he couldn't help but think about his friends out in the Wasteland; hoping that they were still okay and that nothing bad would happen to them. As he slowly dozed off all of his early childhood memories with Ed and Eddy played through his head, giving him comfort as he slept.


	11. Chapter 10 New Friends

**Chapter 10: New Friends**

Eddy's group walked away from the Square Bot City gates and into the thick of Wasteland Earth yet again. They watched as their friends waved goodbye in the distant and saw the sun quickly set on the horizon to summon the darkness of night. They knew that they would have to find some shelter and fast before it got too dark for them to see. They hurried along the dusty ground until they found a cluster of rocks that formed a protective barrier to keep them safe from the elements and wildlife of the Wastes. Relieved to have found shelter they quickly set down their heavy packs and went to work building their base camp for the night. As Ed went to work scavenging nearby wood for a fire, Marie got out some food for tonight's dinner, while Eddy and Jonny (And Plank) laid out everyone's bed sites and discussed the order of taking watch.

"Okay how about Ed, then me, Marie and then you Jonny?" Eddy said as he worked making his own bed site.

"Not sure we want Ed to be taking first watch." Marie said as she looked around for him, "I mean it's not that I don't trust him and all it's just that-"

"He's as dumb as a pile of bricks, yeah we know that already." Eddy interrupted.

"Well, I was just trying to be nice and keep the group's safety but I'll take first watch, I'm not that tired anyways and you guys can figure out the rest." Marie said as she continued to prepare their meal.

"Fine, Marie, then me, Jonny, then Ed. How does that sound to ya'll?" Eddy asked.

"Sounds great to me! Plank and I can't wait to take our shift, isn't that right buddy?" Jonny said as he looked happily at his wooden pal.

"Whatever." Marie said as she continued to labor.

"What?" Ed shouted from a distance.

Eddy simply shook his head in annoyance as he finished up his bed site and moved onto making Ed's.

Jonny had already finished his bed site and Marie's, so he went to go and help Ed find firewood.

"Hey Ed! Where are ya?" Jonny shouted as he searched for Ed in the closing darkness. Remembering his Pipboy light, Jonny quickly turned it on and started looking for Ed. He looked everywhere around the rock cluster but couldn't find him at all, until he stumbled upon Ed who had his back turned to Jonny and was holding a large pile of wood in his arms.

"Oh! There you are Ed! Plank and I were getting worried that you had gotten lost or something. Come on! Marie needs a fire soon so she can start dinner! And Plank's is starving!"

Ed however didn't respond and continued standing there looking off into the distance.

"Uhh, Ed?" Jonny said nervously as he approached the tall Ed boy.

He walked up beside Ed to look him in the face, which had a look of fear upon it. Jonny now getting scared followed the path of Ed's eyes and saw exactly what he was looking at, or rather what was looking at them! A set a large, almond shaped eyes peered at them through the night. They were bright amber and shone like flashlights in the dark atmosphere. Jonny began to quake with fear but was able to restrain himself from making noise, afraid that it might agitate the beast before them.

"Don't move. I don't think it can see us, kind of like a T-Rex. Follow my lead." Ed said in a hushed whisper, as he kept his eyes trained on their little friend.

"Okay." Jonny whispered back, barely opening his mouth, also keeping his eyes on the nighttime prowler.

Ed slowly began to move to his left towards the cluster of rocks with Jonny following suit. The plan was actually working; the creature stayed where it was at as they slowly but surely made progress at getting back to the safety of their base and friends.

Meanwhile back at the base Marie and Eddy were still sitting around waiting for their friends to return with the firewood. Eddy was pacing about and would stop to tap his foot impatiently every so often.

"Where the hell could they be with that damn firewood? I mean sure most of the trees have been burnt but there's still wood around to gather!" Eddy yelled impatiently.

"Yeah what the hell! I didn't get all of this food out and ready just to sit around and stare at it?" Marie complained.

"That's it! I'm going to find out what's taking them so long!" Eddy yelled as he started making his way out of one of the openings in the cluster of rocks.

As Eddy stormed off towards the exit he ran into someone just a few inches taller than himself. Startled, Eddy flung himself away from their unknown guest, who stood before them garbed in a Sheriff's hat and duster, as well as a set of dark sunglasses. His skin complexion was rather tan, much like everyone else who lived in the Wastes. He whipped his medium length black-dark blonde mixed hair out of his face as he stepped a bit closer to Eddy and Marie. He was also armed with an R91 Assault Rifle similar to Kevin's, a .33mm Pistol, and a machete.

"What? Who the fuck are you?" Eddy yelled, as he drew his .32 pistol.

Marie didn't say a word but also drew her weapon and had it trained on the intruder. The young man simply raised his hands in surrender and said softly, "I mean you two no harm, I'm just here to talk." He set down his weapons and held them out for Eddy and Marie to take. They quickly grabbed them and put them out of his reach, never letting him out of their sights. He sat down cross legged and said, "Well allow me to introduce myself, I'm Locke Valentine and well that's my friend..." As he finished that statement Ed's and Jonny's voices filled the night as they let out screams of terror and came charging into the base camp flailing their arms in the air. They were followed by a grey wolf that stopped chasing them and sat itself down, next to Locke.

"This is Shadow, my friend and fellow traveler for quite some time now. I have been following your group for a while now, studying you and making sure that you all were decent people. I saw you guys save that man and his son; I knew after that that I could trust you guys."

"Okay, so what do you want from us then? And why did your so called friend attack our friends?" Eddy asked suspiciously, as he looked back a moment at his friends who were still cowering behind them.

"He didn't mean any harm, he'll only attack those who attack me or who I order him to attack. I am seeking companionship and I was wondering if you all would be willing to take me and Shadow in. I can help you all survive out here in the Wastes. I even have many notes that I wrote down concerning the subject." Locke answered as he pulled out a leather bound book. "There's a lot to the Wastes that you don't know about yet, nor would you ever imagine until you actually saw it. I want to help you guys out with my knowledge. I'm not that strong but I know that you guys could use my help and I need your help. So what do you guys say, yay or nay?" Locke finished.

"Give us a moment would ya?" Eddy said.

"Of course." Locke answered.

The four huddled together, "So what do you guys think of this guy?" Eddy asked.

"I don't know, I mean he seems pretty nice and all but it's hard to just trust someone out here." Marie said.

"Ed scared of big wolf!" Ed yelled.

"Good thing Rolf isn't here, huh buddy?" Jonny said.

"Remember Carl though! Look what happened then! We don't a repeat of that." Eddy said.

"True, very true but there's something different about this guy, I mean let's be honest if he wanted to he and his wolf friend could have killed us all tonight but they didn't." Marie said.

"Ed could become friends with wolf." Ed added.

"Plank says that he seems pretty cool." Jonny said.

Eddy sighed before saying, "Fine, let's give him a shot."

The group broke their huddle and rejoined Locke who was still sitting on the ground petting Shadow. He looked up and saw that their meeting had adjourned.

"Alright Locke as a group we have unanimously decided to let you tag along with us but any funny business and we won't hesitate to get rid of you." Eddy said as he and Marie tossed Locke's weapons back to him.

"Thank you!" Locke said as he caught his weapons and holstered them. "I promise to pull my own weight and be of as much use as possible, Shadow too." Locke said as he got up and reached out his hand which Eddy firmly grasped.

"By the way, the name's Eddy, and this is Marie, Ed, and Jonny, oh and Plank." Eddy said as he pointed to each.

"Nice to meet you all and it would appear that Shadow has already met three of you (that's including Plank). He is terribly sorry and didn't mean to scare you all in any way. I hope that you don't hold that against him." Locke said.

"Nah, he's cool and Plank agrees too." Jonny said.

Ed slowly walked towards Shadow and nervously put his hand out to pet him. He felt his thick but soft fur and immediately smiled and said, "Nice wolf! Ed likes Shadow!"

The group laughed before Eddy said, "So let's say we get that fire started and get to cooking some grub, huh guys?"

Everyone cheered and went to gathering all of the wood that Ed had dropped and brought it back to make their fire. Eddy pulled out his flint and sparked a small flame that soon turned into a roaring campfire. Marie then proceeded to cooking the food while Locke gave her some herbs he had found and gave her tips on making a tastier dinner. The other guys just relaxed and cleaned their weapons until the meal was ready. The meal consisted of some Vault food, which consisted of some instant gravy and mashed potatoes as well as a can of green beans, rice, and bottled water for each of them. They made sure to ration their food so it would last. Locke had enough food to last him and Shadow for several days so he shared it with his new friends to further bolster their food supply.

"So Locke, how long have you been traveling the Wastes?" Eddy asked as he pigged out on some rice.

"Well, back when I was fifteen a group of friends and I left our Vault, unfortunately they were all killed by Raiders." Locke said sadly.

"Yeah, we know what you mean. One of our friends was killed by Raiders; we had just left the Vault too." Jonny responded.

"Which Vault are you guys from?" Locke asked.

"117, you?" Marie answered.

"235." Locke responded.

"Have you slain any giant monsters?" Ed asked as he finished up his mashed potatoes and gravy.

"Yes, many. There are a lot of wicked abominations in this new world of ours." Locke said in a sad tone.

Jonny noticed Locke's sadness and asked, "What's got you down Locke?"

"Just thinking of old memories really, that and it's weird talking with my own kind again. It's been quite a while since the last time I spoke with another human being, let alone a friendly one." Locke replied.

A moment of silence came over the group as they all contemplated their current situation until Eddy said, "Well, I don't know about you guys but I'm pretty wiped out so I'm going to go hit the hay."

Ed yawned rather loudly before saying, "Ed tired, need sleep." He then collapsed on his bed site.

"I'll make sure to keep you all safe tonight." Marie said as she got up and took her post.

"For some reason I'm not comforted by that." Eddy said jokingly.

"Psh, whatever twerp." Marie said as she shook her head.

"Come on Plank we're going to need strength for tomorrow." Jonny said as he laid down.

Locke simply curled up next to Shadow and pulled out a ratty blanket from his pack to cover himself with. Shadow laid down too but kept his ears up and alert in case of danger. Locke pulled the same leather bound book from his pack and flipped through it until he came upon an empty page and began to write. Once finished with his new journal entry he put it away and quickly fell asleep, happy knowing that he was now with people that he knew he could trust.

* * *

The next morning Locke woke up with a start when he heard the sounds of human voices. He quickly remembered though that it was just his friends and calmed down. He saw that they were all packing up their stuff as Jonny and Plank were fixing a quick breakfast of breakfast bars and some leftover rice from the night before. Locke sat up and quickly packed away his blanket back into his pack. Shadow was already up and alert and watched as Locke gathered up his belongings and shouldered his pack. He and Shadow joined the others at the small fire and ate breakfast with them.

"Good morning everyone." Locke said.

"Good morning man, how'd ya sleep last night?" Eddy asked as he finished off his breakfast bar.

"It was the best rest I've had in a while." Locke replied.

"Well that's good to hear, just be lucky that we gave you the night off this time since you're the new guy but for now on you'll have to take watch as well." Marie said.

"That's fine with me; Shadow and I have done that for a while now." Locke said.

There was suddenly a low grumble as everyone looked over at Ed who was holding his belly.

"Ed's still hungry! Need food!"

"Sorry Ed but we have to conserve out supplies or else we'll starve." Marie explained.

"Yeah Ed get over it, we're all still hungry!" Eddy yelled.

Ed ignored the comments and continued rubbing his empty belly.

"Well we should probably be heading out now." Eddy said.

"Where are we going? Do you know?" Locke asked.

"Hmm..." Eddy said as he scratched his chin. "Beats me, I guess wherever the wind takes us." Eddy responded.

"Well do you guys need anything in particular because I'm sure I could lead you to another settlement if you need supplies, weapons, or any other gear?" Locke offered.

"Well, we just sort of wanted to explore the Wastes, you know be free and enjoy life." Marie said.

"Well if that's the case then I can take you all to some awesome places that I'm sure you'll find interesting to say the least." Locke said excitedly.

"Sounds awesome!" Jonny exclaimed.

"Yay! Ed's going on an adventure!" Ed yelled.

"Sure, let's do it!" Eddy replied.

"Follow me then." Locke said as he began walking.

The others followed suit and walked off into the beginning of what was sure to be their greatest adventure yet.

* * *

Edd was walking down the street with an armful of medical supplies that had just arrived from the merchants who came to town that morning. He had been sent by Alloy to help in the buying and selling of the supplies and was now being assigned as delivery boy for Doctor Roland. He hurried along, dodging people as he weaved through the people buying from the marketplace, careful not to drop any of the precious medical supplies. He finally arrived at the hospital where he found the Doctor busy with a sick patient.

"Excuse me Doctor Roland but I have your new supplies. Would you like me to set them down anywhere in particular?" Edd asked.

The Doctor looked up from his patient and said, "Just place them on the counter to my right."

Edd did so and asked, "Is there anything else that you may need?"

"No, I think that should do it, thanks Eddward." Doctor Roland replied.

"You're very welcome sir." Edd said as he walked out of the hospital and back onto the streets.

Edd was surprised when he found out that there were actually traveling merchants brave enough to tough the Wastes just to make a buck or cap rather. But mankind has always been the same, no matter what the environment around them is like. Edd returned to the front gate where the merchants were still posted and decided that he would stop to take a look at what they had and maybe spend a few of his own caps on some of their merchandise. He walked among the different vendors until he found one that sold books, much to Edd's delight. He perused the merchant's modest personal library and was stunned that so many books had actually survived the nuclear war. Edd was only able to save a few of his books (which had of course saved and brought with him) but this was the most books he had seen in a while. Shakespeare, Shelley, Sun Tzu, Clancy, Poe, Asimov, Bradbury, an assortment of comics, some guides and how to books, and even some bad magazines! Edd looked through and found several books on medicine and science that interested him.

"Excuse me sir but how much are your books?" Edd asked as he showed him a few that had sparked his interest.

"500 caps a piece for those." the merchant replied.

"500 caps! I don't have that kind of money!" Edd exclaimed.

"Sorry kid but these are some of the best quality books available and they're pretty damn hard to come by these days." the merchant said.

"That's understandable, but it was a pleasure to see so many books and to meet someone who still cares about literatures." Edd said.

"You're welcome kid, have a good one." the merchant said cheerily.

"You too sir!" Edd said as he walked back into the city and towards Alloy's Compound.

Ever since the kids had arrived they had helped to improve life in Square Bot City drastically. Edd was able to fix a broken water pump which saved their harvest and many had taken time to help some of the local merchants and store's inventory their supplies and set up new contacts for resupplying with the traveling merchants. Some even volunteered to take the shifts of some of the guards. It was also quite lucrative as many people paid the kids for their services which helped make their stay in Square Bot even more enjoyable. They were also able to learn more about the world and where more settlements were located as well as where to steer clear of.

Edd walked into Alloy's Compound and found Alloy as well as several guards who had detained a very, very short man. He was balding, even though he seemed to be in perhaps his early twenties. He had scar several inches long on his right cheek and had a rugged, brown goatee, as well as brown eyes. He was wearing what many of the merchants were wearing but his outfit was much nicer and cleaner than most, if not all of the other merchants Edd had met. He was trying to break free of the guard's powerful grasp but was too weak to do so and gave up.

"Ah, Eddward, I see that you have returned just in time. We found this little rat selling some illegal substances to the local populace and was trying to figure out how to punish him." Alloy said in his robotic voice.

"Uhh, well... who is he?" Edd responded.

"The name's Marcus and I don't understand what is so wrong with Jet or Physco? I mean these people have such a dull life, they need a little fun every once and awhile." Marcus said.

"Be quiet you filth!" one of the guards yelled.

"Alright, alright, no reason to throw a fit now." Marcus replied.

"You could always put him in jail until you figure out a proper punishment for him." Edd suggested.

"Very well then. Guards! Take him away!" Alloy commanded.

The guards did as they were told and dragged Marcus away who flipped off Edd and Alloy until he was out of sight.

"Well now that that is semi taken care of we can discuss other more important matters. Now Eddward, you and your friends have done some great work and town and the citizen greatly appreciate it. But as you can tell we are getting a bit, overcrowded."

Edd shook his head in agreement as he remembered having to fight his way through the crowds in the marketplace daily.

Alloy continued, "Now our scouts have found a nice patch of land a good fifteen to twenty miles west of here that we wish to turn into a colony. However we need to convince the people that it will be worth their while going, so I need you and your friends to not only help convince people but I'm also asking that you act as the Governor of our new colony, which we have already dubbed Colony 117. Now you and your friends would help the new colonists set up while giving them advice and guidance. So, go and talk it over with your friends and return to me with your answer as soon as possible so we can begin." Alloy finished.

Edd was shocked, but at the same time excited about the possible challenge of running a city. "Uhh, thank you sir! I'll go tell the others immediately!" Edd replied excitedly.

"Good! Now run along." Alloy responded.

Edd ran out of Alloy's Compound and towards the barracks that he and his friends had been given as their home. Along the way though he passed by Marcus who was stuck in the stocks on public display for the whole town to see and mock, a proper punishment Edd decided. Trying to avoid him Edd didn't look at him but he heard him yell, "Hey kid come over here will ya!"

Edd really didn't want to go over there but for some unknown reason felt the need to. Edd walked over to Marcus who looked even more pitiful than before.

"Yes, what do you want?" Edd said sharply.

"Hey, no reason to get all snippy kid, I just wanted to ask you something!" Marcus said.

Edd quickly realized his rudeness and said, "Sorry Marcus, what do you want to ask me?"

"Yeah so before you came along that robot dude was in the middle of some conversation about starting up a colony and needing people to be convinced to go." Marcus said.

"Okay, but what does that have to do with me?" Edd said skeptically.

"Well, I was going to say that if you are willing to get me out of this piece of shit, I'd be willing to help you out there, since you seem sort of like a pushover. But me, I know how to get people to do stuff, a natural talent basically. Plus, then I might could get pardoned and not have to face anymore jail time, and I would also be willing to go to said colony and help out there. So, what do you say? Deal or Deal?" Marcus said slyly.

Edd knew that this couldn't be a good idea but at the same time had a hard time saying no to Marcus's offer. He had some valid points at the same time. _"There's no way that I would be able to convince people to leave their homes to move to some colony. Maybe he could be of use after all."_ Edd thought.

"Well... I mean, maybe? I guess I could try and talk to Alloy on your behalf. But how do I know that I can trust you?" Edd asked.

"I'm 4 foot ten and have very little muscle on me, I'm desperate, stuck, and need a way out. How could I get anymore helpless than what I already am? Trust me; I'm not that big of a threat to you." Marcus said.

Again Edd could hardly resist his words, this guy started to remind him of Eddy. These two would probably make good friends if Eddy were still here. "Alright fine, I suppose that you're trustworthy enough. I'll go talk to Alloy and my friends and get back to you as soon as I can, alright." Edd said.

"Sounds good to me! I'll just be waiting here for you to return!" Marcus said happily.

"Okay, well see you around then." and with that Edd continued towards the barracks to find his friends and tell them the news. Though he couldn't help but wonder what plan Marcus had in mind for convincing the masses to leave the city and go to a colony that wasn't even established yet?


	12. Chapter 11 New Beginning

**Chapter 11: New Beginning… **

Edd returned to his friends back at the barracks who were all lying about doing nothing in particular.

Edd burst through the door and said, "Listen up everybody! Alloy has asked me to be the Governor of a new colony that he plans to set up. I need your help, all of you guys. The city has become overcrowded and the need for a new town is very much necessary to the survival of the current occupants. So I ask you all, will you help me?"

The group was in a state of shock but also excitement. The thought of starting a new city, perhaps a new home for them all in this harsh Wasteland appealed to all of them. They could start fresh; it would be like Peach Creek all over again. The idea sounded great to them all.

"Yeah count me in!" Nazz yelled and ran towards Edd.

"Hell yeah, count me in!" Kevin yelled as he hopped off of his bed and also ran towards Edd.

"We're game!" Lee and May yelled in unison.

Rolf and Sarah too jumped up and joined their friends.

"Rolf would be humbled to help out the brainy Ed boy!"

"I'm in if Nazz is!" Sarah commented.

Edd was overwhelmed. He couldn't believe that they were all so willing to give up living here to join him at the new colony. Edd knew that Alloy had given him the new name of the colony but he decided that he would call it, New Peach Creek, in honor of their hometown.

"Thank you so much guys! Now come, we need to spread the word so we can move out as soon as possible!" Edd said.

They all decided to first make some fliers and post them in the marketplace. Edd also explained to them the story on the man he had met earlier named Marcus. The others were at first weary of him but after some explanation they accepted him. While the others thought of an idea for a flier Edd left to meet Alloy to get a warrant for Marcus's release.

Edd ran back to the Headquarters and found Alloy.

"Hello sir, I have just informed my friends about the colony and they have all agreed to join me on this endeavor. I do however have one request to make." Edd said.

"That's great news! Now what do you require?" Alloy asked.

"Well the man Marcus from earlier, I spoke with him and he assured me that he could very easily convince people into moving to the colony. I was wondering if you could release him and allow him to help me and my friends. I know that he seems rather shady but I have a feeling that he'll be perfect for the job of persuading people." Edd finished.

Alloy stared at Edd for several long seconds before replying, "Well, I suppose he's better out there in the Wastes than in here where he can start more trouble. Sure take him along but keep a close eye on him. I still don't trust him." Alloy said.

"Thank you sir and I will. I won't let you down."

"I know you won't Edd now you best get to work." Alloy said as he handed Edd a release warrant.

"Goodbye." Edd said as he left to go and release Marcus.

Edd quickly made his way back to Marcus where he flashed the release warrant. The guard on duty immediately released Marcus from his bonds and let him free.

"Thanks buddy! I knew I could count on you!" Marcus said as he rubbed his sore wrists.

"You're welcome. Now you said you could help me convince people to move. What did you have in mind?" Edd asked.

"Right! Here it is! Okay so people want to know that by moving that there will be more benefits than there are hardships. You know so they feel like they come out on top. So you ensnare them with some sort of catchy slogan like "Free land, better benefits, and a new beginning" something positive like that. These people want freedom but at the same time the safety they have become accustomed to in this town. So we give them that and they'll follow us for sure!" Marcus finished.

"So maybe promise them a certain amount of land, freedom, and protection and that's it?" Edd questioned.

"Yeah, that's why you left your Vault right?" Marcus asked.

"Well, sort of. The freedom part at least and the opportunity to start a new life." Edd answered.

"See, that's what I'm talking about!" Marcus said.

"Hmm… maybe you're right. Well let's get back to the barracks where we can discuss this with the others." Edd said as they both started off towards the barracks.

Edd and Marcus arrived shortly. Edd introduced the others to Marcus who were at first weary of him but eventually they too decided that he wasn't all that bad of a guy. He explained to them the plan and they too agreed that it made sense and deemed it a good idea to attract people. They immediately went to work producing fliers promising everything that Edd and Marcus had agreed upon; wealth, safety, freedom, and a new life.

* * *

They posted the fliers in the most heavily populated parts of the town and before too much longer they noticed a huge interest in the idea. They were limited to only one-hundred and twenty spots and within a week they had very easily filled all of those spots as well as a backup list in case anyone died, got sick, or backed out. Most of that week seemed like a blur to Edd as he and the others requisitioned food, weapons, medical supplies, building material, carts for transportation, and other necessary materials. Unfortunately neither John nor Henry could join them as they still were required to scout for Alloy but promised that they would drop by and visit someday. Edd also learned a bit more about Marcus and his past. He learned that he used to be quite the drug lord until he screwed up a big order which sent him into hiding. He also learned that he's an amazing shot when it comes to a pistol and Marcus helped Edd improve on his aim some. Overall Edd liked Marcus but still distrusted him to some degree. Aside from Marcus and Alloy Edd mostly kept to himself as he worked on the plans for the big move. It was a lot more work than Edd expected and it kept him up late most nights.

Finally Edd had gathered together all of the supplies and volunteers that he needed. In the early hours of the next morning of the new week Edd had everyone meet at the city gates where everyone said their goodbyes. Edd would miss this quaint town, as well as John and Henry. But he had a job to do and a big one at that. He just hoped that whatever they faced out there he would be able to handle it and keep everyone safe. He thought of Ed, Eddy, Marie, and Jonny out there in the Wasteland. He hoped that they were still okay. He finally received the orders to move so with map in hand Edd started his journey as he led his brave group of colonists deep into the Wasteland where the hope of "wealth, freedom, security, and a new life" was on everyone's mind.

* * *

Meanwhile, about a hundred miles away from Square Bot City Eddy and his group where still surviving in the Wasteland, but they were all very close to death…

"Fuck, this hurts!" Eddy yelped as he held his bloody hand over the large gash on his chest. Blood was steadily pouring from his wound and he was beginning to feel cold and numb. He knew that it was only a matter of time before he and his friends would be knocking at Death's door.

_"That thing came out of nowhere. God damn it was fast, it caught poor Jonny off guard completely. It had to be at least nine feet tall, maybe even taller! And those claws, those claws that tore into our flesh, thank God Ed was able to kill the thing otherwise I'm sure it would be feasting on us right now. I've got to try and check on the others…"_Eddy thought as he started to crawl towards Ed's seemingly lifeless body.

It was the most agonizing pain Eddy had ever felt in his short life. The dirt below Eddy was slowly being turned into red mud as his blood mingled with it. Eddy was trying to make his way to Ed who was only a few feet away from him. He just had to get to Ed; he was fucked up real bad. But Jonny… it must have taken off his hand or more when it attacked. Luckily Locke and Shadow were there as well. They put up a great fight but they too were put down by that horrible beast. And Marie, she's moving, barely, but at least she can move too. _"I just have to get to Ed!"_Eddy thought. Eddy was crawling trying to get closer when he saw that Ed was still breathing, barely. Eddy was just mere inches away from Ed now but he knew that if he lost any more blood he would blackout for sure and never wake up again. But just as Eddy reached Ed a powerful force impacted Eddy's side sending reeling back into the dirt away from Ed. Eddy looked up and covered his eyes from the burning sun to see a person dressed up in a hulking suit of metal armor. But he wasn't the only one; there were several more all checking up on the others.

"Who are you and what are you doing out here?" the armored man asked harshly. He sounded like Darth Vader or something when he spoke

"Fuck you!" Was all Eddy could manage as he collapsed against the ground below him and let the blackness of unconsciousness engulf him.


	13. Chapter 12: Rift

**Chapter 12: Rift**

**A/N: **_I would strongly suggest that before proceeding to read this chapter you reread Saviors of the Wastes as I have revised all of the chapters to some extent. There is new dialogue, better description, added scenes, etc. There isn't a ton but several chapters have increased by about half a page or more in some cases. Anyways, enjoy the next installment of Saviors of the Wastes._

* * *

Edd led his exodus across the barren Wastes towards their destination… their new home. Home. That was a word Edd hadn't thought of in an affirmative way ever since they started this chaotic journey of theirs. For some reason the events of the last week felt like a blur, even the death of his father and the horrifying image of himself shooting the Overseer in blind rage had all but disappeared from his mind for a time, until he had the nightmares. He had had a few terrifying nightmares while they were packing up and getting ready to leave but he kept them to himself. If Ed and Eddy were still here he would have gladly shared them with his friends but he felt like now he had no friends. Well Rosie was a nice guy and he did make him in making that battery gun but he'd never see him again unless he rode along with one of the supply caravans. Sure the others were nice to him (well almost all of them) but he had spent most of childhood being hated by them. Edd came to the conclusion that he was indeed alone now in the Wasteland, a feeling that made him cringe. Edd put his own thoughts aside and directed them back towards his main goal which was to lead these people to their new home to be.

Alloy had sent some armed guards with them and many of the colonists had their own weapons but Edd felt vulnerable and exposed out here on the open plains of the Wastes. Marcus, while being helpful in getting this endeavor on its feet, still struck Edd as untrustworthy. There was just something about him that made one want to trust him with your entire being yet to want to keep as far away from him as possible. It was Marcus's words that forced Edd out of his thoughts and back to reality.

"Hey kid get your head out of the irradiated clouds and back on the task at hand!" Marcus complained. He shook his head at Edd in annoyance before refocusing his attention on the plains ahead.

"I'm sorry Marcus, I was daydreaming. It won't happen again." Edd looked down at his Pipboy 3000 and noticed that they were closing in on their objective. "It looks like we'll be there within the hour which should give us enough daylight to put up some lean-tos and get some sort of security system up."

"Sounds like a damn good plan kid, then again you're the boss so whatever you say goes." Marcus said nonchalantly. His eyes were elsewhere as he looked out over the landscape.

Edd didn't understand Marcus and his ways, then again who did? In fact Edd hardly knew anything about the guy besides a few minor facts and the fact that he was extremely charismatic and seemed to get into trouble a lot. Well he was here now and Edd would have to deal with it. Edd hadn't really seen much of the others since they started their journey but he knew that they had had better luck with making friends with the local populace. Kevin became friends with some of the guards at the front gate and hung out with them on a few occasions. Nazz had formed a crush on a local guy and spent most of her extra time with him. His name is Lyle Villagher and he had been one of the first to sign up. Both he and Nazz really hit it off and it was weird to see how much in common they had. Though as soon as Kevin heard the news he became enraged and has since refused to speak to either of them. Sarah seemed to have become a loner though which probably had some connection with Jimmy's death; maybe she just needed a new friend?

Edd couldn't help but feel sorry for her even after all of the crap she had put him and his friends through. Rolf along with Kevin had made friends with the guards and also showed some interest in Elizabeth or Liz as she preferred; the same girl whose mom sold them food and medical supplies the day they first arrived in Square Bot City. She too had signed up for the adventure. The Kankers… well they of course gravitated to the wrong crowd, mostly hanging out in bars and the like. And strangely enough an image of Marie popped into Edd's mind. How long had he and his friends known them for? And how many of those years had they tortured the Eds? But Marie had changed a lot even to the point where Edd had started to think of her as an acquaintance perhaps? Maybe something between an acquaintance and friend? Either way he actually wondered if she was safe along with the others who had left to find their calling in the Wasteland.

Edd soon realized that he may never see the people he cared about the most again; the thought made him tear up almost but he was able to keep his composure. He longed for some companionship, he wanted to his best friends again, to be able to see them in the flesh alive and well. But that would have to wait. He had a job to do and he planned to accomplish it to the best of his abilities. He continued to lead on in silence though his mind continued to churn through the ideas floating around in his head. It was midday when Edd announced that they had reached their destination.

The land was generally flat except for a sizable hill which seemed out of place compared to the rest of the landscape. Edd knew that that would prove to be a defendable location and immediately sent in a team to secure the hill and gather a report on its stability. He had his cul-de-sac mates lead different teams for setting up shelter, security, preparing food, and assessing the land for valuable resources. Edd was left with Marcus and a few other colonists who Edd liked enough to include in his cabinet of sorts.

"Well kid I must say I didn't think you had it in you at first but you proved me wrong so I want you to have this…" Marcus patted Edd roughly on the back. "There you go, a job well done!" Marcus said and then began to laugh and walk off.

Edd was dumbfounded then just wrote off Marcus's behavior as one of his many weird mannerisms. Edd faced the rest of his men and told them to go and make sure that things run smoothly, leaving him alone. Edd found a sizable rock, sat down and leaned back against it. Despite his fresh look he was tired and just wanted to rest. He felt bad at first for not helping out the others and almost got up to do some work but decided that he would be of little service if he was stumbling around half asleep. In fact he'd probably just get in the way of things and make everyone else's job that much harder. Edd closed his eyes and allowed sleep to take him but it wasn't long before another nightmare caused him to wake in a cold sweat and terror pumping through his veins. It was always one of the same two dreams; Edd either found himself walking down one of the many Vault corridors until being confronted by the Overseer at the other end. Edd would fire his pistol and kill the Overseer causing a tidal wave of blood to come gushing down the hallway and drowning Edd in it or he'd fire at the Overseer unable to kill him until the Overseer was upon him and slit his throat, except the Overseer was more demented looking. Blackened eyes, the stench of blood, and rotting skin; the most horrific thing Edd had ever witnessed.

Edd knew that these dreams were unhealthy and the signs of his sleep deprivation would become evident very soon if he didn't get this figured out. Edd made note to try and visit the local doctor to see if she had any suggestions for him. Until then Edd decided that he would try and do something productive that would keep his mind off of the dreams… and his friends.

* * *

Eddy could hear faint voices speaking over top of him, "He's lost a lot of blood!" "I know he has! Now keep some pressure on that wound!" "Just one more stitch." "I think he's going to make it."

Eddy eventually woke and found himself staring at a metal ceiling. The pain in his chest was still there but nowhere near as bad when he was lying in the dust. It was then that the memories of what had happened flooded back into Eddy's mind. They were simply walking, enjoying the companionship and being free. Ed was saying some of the most ridiculous things making everyone laugh; Shadow probably even cracked a wolfish grin. It came out of nowhere, this giant, scaly, lizard-like beast. It stood about nine feet tall maybe a bit more but its speed was something that Eddy had never seen before. It attacked Jonny first with great speed and ferocity sending him sprawling back onto the dirt in agony. Everyone else opened fire upon it but it had a tough hide. Ed luckily was able to wounds one of its legs but not before it had gotten to Marie and Ed himself, again putting them out of action with massive cuts to their bodies. Next it went after Shadow who was able to get a few good bites on it but Shadow simply didn't stand a chance. Locke was able to injure it even more but he too was put down leaving only Eddy standing. Eddy pulled out his .32 and unloaded every last bullet into it but it barely even fazed the creature which resulted in a large gash on Eddy's chest. Eddy could remember the look it gave him before its head burst into a shower of blood and brain matter. Ed! Ed was able to pull off one last shot which ended the creature's life as it stumbled around a bit before collapsing into the dust for good.

After that Eddy and his friends were abducted by men clad in metallic suits, resembling perhaps knights of old. Eddy finally worked up the strength to look around a bit and saw a few of his friends before forcing himself to lay back down as sharp pain shot through his entire being. Eddy heard a voice and a young nurse walked over to his clad in a much lighter and smaller version of metal armor compared to the ones he saw before he passed out. She had a pretty face and medium length red hair.

"Sir, you're going to have to lie still or else you're going to tear your stitches!" She said sternly.

"Where the hell am I and where are my friends?" Eddy questioned.

"Your friends are all sleeping so unless you want to wake them up please be quiet." She answered before walking off in a huff.

"Bitch…" Eddy said to himself. He had to figure out where he was but wasn't sure how much success he would have with this gash on his chest and that bitchy nurse wandering about. He decided to try and look up again and this time saw some of those armored men and a few others dressed in metal armor with an orange cloak overtop. There was also another armored man but he wasn't wearing his helmet. He had a thick neck, large broad nose, bushy eyebrows, dark brown eyes, he look as if he was either under a lot of stressed, annoyed, or probably both but he had this air of professionalism about him. He was clean shaven and had short graying hair. Whoever he was he seemed important with his heavily armed entourage following him. He looked around the room and noticed Eddy staring at him. He gave Eddy a tough look then walked over towards him. Eddy quickly laid back down but it was too late when he heard what had to be the booming, drill sergeant-like voice of the important looking man.

"Boy did I give you permission to look at me? I ought to duct take your eyes to the back of your head so you can watch me kick your pathetic, useless, Wasteland ass! Do you understand me?" he finished.

"Yes sir!" Eddy yelped. Eddy was scared out of his mind by this guy.

"Louder asswipe!"

"Sir yes sir!" Eddy replied.

"Good! Now I want the names of all of these worthless sons of bitches, uniform sizes, skills, and weapon preferences on my desk by 1600 today ladies!" He finished his orders and walked out. The men saluted and returned to their original posts, giving the patients a little bit more time to rest before they questioned them.

Eddy finally managed the strength to sit himself up against the back of the bed he was laying in. He finally got a good view of his friends all of whom were alive and looking around as well. Marie seemed to have suffered a wound similar to Eddy's and had some small cuts and bruises on her arms and face. Jonny was beat up bad but luckily hadn't lost his entire left hand, only his pinky and ring finger along with part of his palm. He had raised it in defense when the creature had swung at him, just grazing his left hand but still causing some major damage. He got lucky to say the least. Ed was beat up bad too, his side got all tore up and he suffered a concussion when he fell and hit his head on a rock. It's amazing that he was still able to kill the beast. Locke wasn't as bad off as Eddy thought. He suffered some minor bruises and cuts on his arm and face and had several long cuts across his right arm. Shadow was also doing okay. Aside from a bad slash on his side he was to make a full recovery. Honestly they had all gotten lucky, it made Eddy feel angry for getting hurt when he promised not to. Well Edd doesn't need to hear about this now does he?

Marie gave a weak wave to Eddy who returned it.

"Hey, how ya doin Marie?" Eddy asked.

"Oh not too bad, just a bad cut is all." Marie answered sarcastically. "How about yourself?"

"I'll live." Eddy answered.

Ed was still sort of groggy from all of the drugs but was able to say, "Hey Eddy! I did it! I killed my first monster!"

Eddy couldn't help but smile at his idiotic friend.

"You sure did buddy! You saved us all. Hell you deserve a medal."

"I already got one see!" Ed replied as he held up a gritty bronze star.

"Cool medal Ed! Plank wants to know where ya got it." Jonny asked who also had Plank sitting by his side. For someone who had nearly lost his hand Jonny was in good spirits.

Locke simply looked around and was relieved to see all of his friends alive and well. He looked down and saw Shadow looking up at him with those big amber eyes. Locke laid back and let himself succumb to sleep.

"Wait what the fuck? Ed how did you get that medal?" Eddy exclaimed, and then regretted it as his outburst caused pain to course through his injured body.

"Uhh, I forget." Ed said dumbly.

"He earned it for the valiant effort he showed in combat." A voice answered.

Everyone looked over and saw a man in his late twenties leaning in the doorway of the medical bay. He too was wearing metallic armor and lacked a helmet. He had strong, young features, wild green eyes, lacked facial hair, and had buzzed blonde hair. The armor made him look intimidating yet heroic.

"Who are you?" Marie asked.

"The name's Paladin Stone or if you're a close friend Alex, which none of you are so you can refer to me as Paladin Stone or you're new Squad Leader." Stone replied with a smirk.

"Squad Leader? What the hell does that mean? What the hell going on here?" Eddy exclaimed.

"Quiet down initiate! I will not have my squad yelling and causing a disturbance in the Medical Bay! As soon as you're healthy again you'll be doing fifty push-ups for that!" Stone reprimanded. "Now, let me explain to you "what the hell" is going on here. You're current location is Bunker Alpha which is located near Chicago, Illinois in case you weren't sure. And who are we? We're the Brotherhood of Steel. And what do we do as the Brotherhood of Steel you may be wondering? Well here I'll answer that question too. We are here to spread our knowledge and technology with the local populace of this region as we feel that it will benefit them and give them a better life. You see after our great victories in the West against the Master's Army our Elders saw fit that we hoard our technology for ourselves thus letting everyone else suffer. A minority though stood up against the Elder's decision but no matter how convincing our arguments they silenced us. They sent the minority East across the mountains to hunt down the rest of the Master's Army so that we may permanently erase them from existence. However we ran into some trouble as out airships were torn apart by a great storm; crash landing us here near the city of Chicago. We pressed on and started a new beginning where we now do as please apart from the Brotherhood of Steel in the West. Does that answer all of your questions?" Stone finished.

"Uhh, yeah just one… why am I a part of this Brotherhood of Steel thing and how do I get out?" Eddy asked angrily.

"First off that was two questions and now to answer your remaining questions. First question, because you were trespassing on our grounds and we saved your life. You owe service to us now. Second question you don't get out until you've served your time." Stone replied.

"Eddy simply sat back and said, "This sucks."

"Awesome we get to be a part of the Brotherhood of Steel Plank!" Jonny exclaimed.

"Yeah, woo-hoo." Marie said sarcastically.

"Glad to hear the enthusiasm. Don't worry you'll grow to love the Brotherhood or we'll force you to love it. Either way you'll love it so you might as well get over and do it the easy way initiates! I'll report back to you later so get some rest. I'm sure the Scribes will be swarming you soon asking you for your information." And with that being said Stone saluted his initiates and left.

"Can you guys believe this? One minute we're free and the next we're being forced to serve this Brotherhood of Steel whatever!" Eddy complained.

"We'll figure something out but until then probably be best if we lay low and just go with it." Marie advised.

"This is going to be awesome!" Ed and Jonny shouted in unison.

Locke simply continued to sleep while Shadow looked at them all with tired eyes.

* * *

Kevin weaved his way through the many lean-tos while avoiding several near accidents. He was on a mission and refused to let anyone or anything stop him from accomplishing it. He was going to kill Lyle, even if it was the last thing he did. Kevin was able to buy a Snub Nose .38 Revolver from one of his guard friends one night when they were at the bar getting wasted; the night Kevin found out about Lyle. Luckily his friend was so drunk Kevin was able to get a great deal on such a rare weapon. And now that Snub Nose poked slightly against Kevin's thigh, just waiting to be fired. Kevin had been planning this for the past week now and had a good idea of how it would go down. He'd contact Lyle and tell him to meet somewhere remote where Kevin could "apologize" to him for how he had acted earlier that week. And then he'd kill him and try and lay the blame on someone else. Even if it didn't win Nazz back over at least she'd feel the same way he did when she dumped him. The plan was flawless and Kevin's adrenaline was already pumping. He told Lyle to meet him on the outskirts South of the settlement, alone. The bastard had agreed when Kevin told him that he wanted to apologize but was too shy to do it in the open.

Kevin finally made it to their meeting place; a small cluster a rocks a couple hundred yards from camp. Close enough for anyone close by to hear the shot but far enough away for Kevin to make his escape. The plan was sure to work. Kevin only had to wait for a few moments when Lyle approached him. Lyle was about six feet tall give or take an inch or two. Dirty blonde hair, no facial hair, very mature looking for someone of his age, he had some muscle but nowhere near as much as Kevin. Overall he was a charming young man who had a promising future ahead of him, until he got into Kevin's way. Kevin cordially greeted him and had him sit down on a small rock whilst Kevin paced back and forth. Kevin had donned a serious yet nervous disguise to assure Lyle that he was sorry and only searching for the right words. Kevin turned so that his back faced Lyle.

"Listen Lyle, about what happened last week… I- I just wasn't thinking straight man. I honestly didn't mean the things I said about you and Nazz. In fact I'm actually happy that you guys are together." Kevin turned around to face Lyle for the last part. "I think that you and I could actually become close friends that is if you're willing. I may be a jerk most of the time but I want to start over. So what do you say pal, friends?" Kevin extended his hand to Lyle who immediately gripped Kevin's hand.

"Yeah man of course I forgive you and I'd be honored to be your friend!" Lyle said happily.

He was so sincere and nice it's a shame that he has to die. Maybe they could have been friends granted the circumstances were different but no matter there's little time to waste and Kevin was growing impatient.

"Thanks man you don't know how much this means to me!" Kevin lied as he pulled Lyle in for an embrace. Kevin fished the snub nose out of his pocket with his right hand. He placed the cold steel barrel against Lyle's chest, right where his heart would be. Lyle tensed up at the touch of the gun barrel and looked at Kevin who was staring angrily at him.

"Wha- what's going on?" Lyle stammered as sweat began to form on his brow.

"I'm afraid that you've fucked with the wrong guy Lyle! Nazz is mine and now it's time for you to go." Kevin pulls back the hammer. "Catch ya later, friend."

* * *

Rolf was helping a couple put together a lean-to when he heard a gunshot resound from close by. Frightened he slung his Hunting Rifle around and readied himself for an onslaught of attackers. However none came. Rolf immediately ran towards the location from where he heard the round go off. Other had also joined in for the pursuit of the phantom shooter but instead came across the grisly aftermath of the shooting. Young Lyle lying in the dirt now soaking up his blood like a sponge. All color had drained from his once young and vibrant face. Rolf knelt down beside him and confirmed what everyone already knew. Lyle was dead but one question still remained. Who was his murderer?

They carried his body back to their temporary Aid Station where they prepared his body for burial. It didn't take long for the news to spread that someone had been killed and that the killer may still be among them. Edd made his way to the Aid Station as quickly as possible. All of the Peach Creekers were present as well as Marcus and the medical staff. Edd made his way to the gurney where Lyle's body had been laid upon. Nazz was sobbing uncontrollably as she looked down at the young man she had fallen in love with over the last week. Sarah had her arms around Nazz and was crying along with her. Trying her (Sarah) best to comfort her (Nazz) just as she had comforted her when she lost Jimmy. The others were quiet as they watched the crying girls. Questions were racing through Edd's mind at a hundred miles an hour. How had this happened? Who was responsible? How many more would die? And was he truly cut out for this job?

Edd finally worked up the nerve to speak. "Does anyone have any idea of who may be responsible or was anyone close by to see what happened?"

Rolf answered with, "Rolf was helping in setting up lean-tos when a gunshot was heard. Rolf waited a minute or two before investigating and found young Lyle… deceased."

"There also wasn't any bullet casing left behind so either this guy was smart and picked it up before he left or used a revolver of some type." Marcus added.

"So we have no idea then? Very well we will strengthen the patrols tonight and make more watch fires around the perimeter. Anyone who wasn't assigned guard and is found walking about without proper reason will be apprehended and questioned. We can't let this get to the people's minds so the sooner we catch this felon and bring him or her to justice the better." Edd concluded.

"Rolf will spread the news and choose the guards if you wish brainy Ed boy?"

"That would be great Rolf thank you. As for everyone else keep a close eye out for any suspicious activity and report it to any of the guards or me." Edd added.

Everyone nodded and left except for Nazz, Sarah, and Kevin.

The two continued to cry for a few more minutes before Nazz said, "Sarah you should go and get some sleep I'll be fine and thank you for all that you've done."

"Are you sure Nazz I'd be more than happy to stay with you?" Sarah questioned.

"No, it's fine." Nazz said as she wiped away more tears and forced a smile.

"Okay well find me if you need anything." Sarah said and smiled back.

They quickly exchanged one last hug before Sarah departed. All the while Kevin stood by and watched, seemingly invisible to the two girls. Once Sarah left Kevin moved in.

"Hey Nazz. I'm sorry about Lyle."

Nazz was caught off guard by Kevin's voice. _"Where did he come from and how long had he been standing there?" _Nazz thought then said, "Hey Kev thanks. Well I better get going; I think some sleep may do me some good."

"You mind if I walk you back to your place?" Kevin asked.

"Sure Kev that would be nice actually."

Kevin and Nazz started making their way back to Nazz's lean-to which was only a few minutes away.

They two walked in silence until they reached the entrance of the lean-to.

"Thanks again Kevin. Well I'll see you around I guess. Bye!" Nazz said as she hugged Kevin.

"Wait Nazz! There's something I need to tell you…"

"What is it Kev?" Nazz questioned.

"I love you Nazz."

Nazz was caught off guard by Kevin's statement but recovered and said, "I love you too Kevin, as a friend."

Kevin quickly grabbed Nazz and pulled her in. He kissed her passionately as Nazz tried to break free. She quickly did with a kick to Kevin's groin which made him stumble back, releasing her.

"What the hell Kevin? What was that about?" Nazz said, now infuriated by Kevin's behavior.

"Shit!" Kevin yelped as he held his sore groin. "I thought you said you loved me?" Kevin asked angrily.

"Yeah as a friend! What did you think I said?" Nazz responded.

"Was I not good enough for you Nazz? Was Lyle everything that you ever dreamed of in a guy? What made him so much better than me huh? I did everything for you and then you dumped me!" Kevin roared.

"What are you talking about Kevin? You tried to force me to sleep with you! And what were you jealous of Lyle?" Nazz yelled back.

"Fuck you, stupid bitch you had this coming you know! Now you know how I felt when you left me! Now you'll know how it feels to be let down by the one you love, how it feels to be alone!" Kevin whispered harshly.

Nazz was taken aback by what Kevin had said. _"He murdered Lyle!" _she thought. Tears were already forming again in Nazz's eyes. Nazz remembered what Edd had said, _"…else keep a close eye out for any suspicious activity and report it to any of the guards or me." _Nazz starting screaming out for help. Kevin booked it for his place before the first word had hardly left Nazz's mouth. His lean-to was close by. He had been planning ahead and his second plan was already laid out should his first plan of winning Nazz over fail. He was going to escape into the Wasteland. He had been storing up supplies for a week now and was confident that he could survive for a week or more out there. That should give him enough time to find a decent place to stay where he could hunt and hopefully find some clean water. He made it back to his place in great time and was already putting on his pack and had his Assault Rifle at the ready. It was just a straight shot into the Wasteland now. _"Half a football field away, it'll be just like practice." _Kevin thought as he sprinted away from the camp.

He could already hear the voices of other sprinting to the scene and heard someone shout at him as he ran. The first gunshots went off and that's when Kevin's football training kicked in. He sprinted as fast as he could while running in a serpentine motion to make himself a harder target. _"Just a few more yards and then they'll never catch me!" _Kevin saw two guards in front of him standing by a watch fire, obviously having been alerted by the gunshots. Without hesitation Kevin opened fire upon them with his Assault Rifle gunning them both down before they could react. And then he was swallowed by the darkness of the Wasteland. Rolf and several other guards ran up to where the two unfortunate guards were fired upon and killed. Rolf cursed under his breath as he realized they were two of the guards Kevin and Rolf used to hang out with.

"He got away sir!" one of the guards yelled.

"Rolf knows…" Rolf said angrily as he walked away.

* * *

Two more bodies joined Lyles at the Aid Station. Half of their gurneys were already filled and it was only the first day. Edd was beside himself when he heard that it was Kevin who had murdered all three and that he had escaped. Edd thought about sending a patrol after him but figured it would be pointless and possibly result in more lives being lost. He knew that Kevin had done what he wanted to accomplish and doubted he would ever return. He'd broken Nazz's heart. Edd paced around his makeshift headquarters as his aids and Marcus watched him. It was still early in the morning and the sun was just beginning to rise on the horizon.

"I don't know what to do guys! I'm at my wits end and we've hardly even begun! Maybe I just wasn't cut out for this job… Alloy should have chosen someone else." Edd said sadly.

"Listen kid you're going to have to nut up and get over this shit! This is life in the fucking Wastes kid, now get used to it! You think I was happy when my drug empire went to shit and I became a wanted man for half a dozen Raider gangs? You think I wanted to quit when I had to spend nights eating Brahmin shit and piss in order to stay alive? Shit! You don't know hardship; you've only had a taste of what true hardship is!" Marcus yelled.

Edd despite his peaceful nature could feel his blood boiling. He couldn't contain his anger any longer.

"Shut up! I do know what hardship is! I've lost my father, my homes; my two best friends are out in the Wastes and could be dead for all I know! I killed the Overseer of my Vault and now I have three deaths hanging over my head! So I know what hardship is and next time you make a comment like that again I'll put you in the stocks!" Edd finished who by now was breathing heavily and red in the face.

Marcus sat there for a second then started to smile. "I knew you still had it in ya kid! You see you do have what it takes! You stood up to me and defended yourself! Now get out there and prove to these people that you're going to do everything in your power to keep them safe and stop an event like this from happening again!" Marcus exclaimed then punched Edd in the arm.

Edd was so confused by Marcus yet he made so much sense. He reminded him of a shorter, perhaps more encouraging, yet still rude and angry Eddy. Edd didn't even have time to be appalled by his outburst he just simply nodded his head and thanked Marcus before marching out of his tent and into the camp. He needed to hold a meeting; it was time to lay down some rules and guidelines. Edd would never allow such an event from occurring again.

Edd stopped and quickly turned his head towards Marcus and said, "Meeting. Gather what's left of the Peach Creekers and my staff. Meet me by the lone tree east of the camp in an hour. You can't miss it." Edd finished then kept walking onwards.

Marcus saluted and immediately starting barking orders at the staff members. Edd knew it was only a matter of time before the Wasteland changed him. The effects of this new, cruel mistress were already evident among himself and his friends. No longer would they reflect the same children from years ago. Edd thought of the picture of he and his parents back at the Vault. The sun was now rising and the first rays of the new day hit Edd in the face, forcing him to shield his eyes. No, those days were over; a new dawn has risen, forever changing their lives.

* * *

Kevin didn't stop running until he collapsed from exhaustion. He must have been running two if not three hours by now. He needed to rest; there was no way that they could have been able to keep up with him. The again Kevin wasn't even sure if they gave chase or simply let him off the hook. It didn't matter to Kevin anyways; he was free and had accomplished his mission. Now he just had to survive; survival was his new mission. He rested atop a small plateau and looked out over the Wasteland before him. Desolate, barren, yet enticing. No wonder Eddy and his band of idiots left. Kevin slipped off his pack and retrieved a bottle of purified water. It tasted good as it quenched his parched throat, mouth, and tongue. He could still taste Nazz on his lips despite all of the sweating he had done. Between all of the heavy breathing as he ran Kevin had contemplated whether his actions were right. He eventually judged that he was in the clear and had nothing to worry about. Nazz had deserved it for the pain she had caused him. He was already in so much pain to begin with when she did dump him; still struggling to get over his mother's death, having to deal with his drunken maniac of a father, the fact that his life was now ruined. Nazz was the only thing that mattered to him during those days because at least they both made each other happy.

All he was trying to do was take their relationship to the next level. Sure they were still young but that didn't matter to him and it shouldn't have mattered to her. She had denied him and then a day later she broke up with him and said that they could never be together again. Heartbroken, Kevin returned to his home and drank himself to sleep and then he woke up to his father's yelling for drinking his alcohol. Kevin at that moment wished his dad would have gone a rampage and killed him but this time he simply left Kevin and returned to his own quarters. It took Kevin three days before he could show his face to his friends again. Even then he never felt quite at home around them, especially Nazz. Then the Lyle incident put him over the top. It was almost as if Nazz were just trying to rub it in his face! _"What I did was the right thing and I'd do it a thousand times if I had too!" _Kevin thought to himself. Once Kevin caught his breath he got his bearings. He thought he could see the colony from atop the plateau but wasn't quite sure. Either way his safe bet was to continue in the direction he was already going which he believe to be North. He could see some mountains in the distance and figured they could provide for some decent shelter and maybe there would be some game or better yet water nearby. Kevin put his pack back on and shouldered his Assault Rifle. He felt like a soldier, better yet a one man army. He felt unstoppable as he walked down the plateau and back onto the plains of the Wasteland. His pride continued to swell until he felt a hard blow to the back of the head and darkness enveloped him.

* * *

Edd sat by the tree alone until everyone else arrived. He was trying to get a list of rules and regulations in his head before the others showed up. There were many obvious ones and he planned to get those out of the way first so they could have more time to work on the more pressing issues. It wasn't long before everyone else showed up and greeted Edd. Edd felt tired and he knew everyone could see it in his eyes. Edd had hardly slept in a week if not more. They were all tired and wondered if they would ever be able to take a break from it all. Edd didn't waste any time and immediately started explaining to them some of the basic rules he planned on implementing. Such as a curfew, mandatory guard and caravan duty, equal work hours and rations, all weapons are to remained holstered unless on guard or caravan duty, and several others. He explained to them how they needed some sort of Town Hall in a central location where people could go to for the news, a Courthouse, and a proper jail.

They would also need to work out a better sanitation system to avoid disease, and find a way to gather their own food. Rolf suggested that they raise Brahmin of their own and volunteered to take care of them. Lee suggested that they open up a bar where workers could go to blow off some steam. Edd agreed despite several moral objections to the idea. They could work out the details for that one later. Nazz suggested that they try and set up some sort of mail route in order to stay in communication with Square Bot City and so that the people in the colony could stay in contact with family and friends who still reside within the city. Marcus stressed the importance of placing caravan Rest Stations and Security Check Points for the caravans in route to Square Bot City. They decided to include Post Roads as well to help implement Nazz's idea. Marcus also noted that that would allow for more people to join the colony which would only further strengthen their cause. Sarah suggested that they have some sort of box where people can in private voice their own concerns and needs so they can feel like they have a voice as well.

Overall they were able to put together a decent list of ideas and rules for the colony which they planned to post around the town. Edd concluded his meeting and gathered up all of the notes his aids had taken during the meeting for further review. Everyone went back to their work stations while Edd walked back towards his Temporary Headquarters. It was calming to have that talk (albeit a serious one) with his fellow Peach Creekers. It helped to take his mind off of things and lifted his mood a bit. He felt much more confident after Marcus's pep talk. He felt ready to lead these people and mentally prepared himself for the next disaster that was sure to come.

* * *

Eddy found out from one of the nurses that he had been in a coma for three days along with most of the others. But he could feel his strength returning and whatever medicine they giving them was working like a charm. The pain was already starting to subside some and the doctor estimated that they would be able to get up and do some light exercises in a few days. The Scribes had come by like Paladin Stone had promised and gathered their information which annoyed Eddy to no end. Sure he got to keep his old weapons and got some new, cool-looking armor but now he had to serve under someone again. And the fact that that someone was Paladin Stone made it even worse_. "He's like Kevin except worse since he's actually in charge! Will my luck ever change?"_ Eddy thought to himself.

Marie was doing a lot better as well. Despite the nurses warnings she got up and walked around for a minute before becoming dizzy and almost passing out. Of course she bragged to Eddy about being the first to get up and walk around which caused Eddy to try a similar stunt only to end in him face planting on the floor. Marie wasn't sure why but she enjoyed riling Eddy up for some reason. I guess because he reminded her of Lee, if she were a dude of course. Marie genuinely did miss her sisters despite their constant arguing but she never showed it. She didn't want to look weak around the guys; she wanted to prove she could not only keep up with them but excel. Though the guys she was with weren't exactly the best and brightest. She actually didn't mind being a part of this Brotherhood of Steel, that and Paladin Stone was rather easy on the eyes. Marie noticed that with each day of being out in the Wastes she began to think less and less about Edd. Maybe because she had felt like she had to be something she wasn't in order to win him over? Or was it because Paladin Stone had many of the characteristics she liked in a man. Strong, sarcastic, dominant, good looking, and not held back by morals. All she knew was that he seemed like her type and maybe it was time that she moved on. _"Edd doesn't really love me anyways and maybe we just weren't meant to be together anyways. That would explain a lot of things actually." _Marie thought.

Jonny was unsure of how his life would be missing part of his hand but luckily it was his less dominant hand that got hurt. The doctor had okayed him for combat duty so at least he and Plank wouldn't be left out. Jonny didn't mind it here plus these people had saved their lives so maybe they did owe them some service. Jonny was slightly intimidated by Paladin Stone but knew that he would become accustomed to him and his berating comments eventually. Stone even allowed Plank to tag along with him though he gave Jonny a strange look at the request. Overall Jonny was excited about being a part of the Brotherhood of Steel. _"Who knows buddy maybe we'll become heroes and everyone across the Wasteland will know about us!"_

Locke had mixed feelings about the Brotherhood of Steel. On the one side they showed compassion in saving both he and his friends but on the other hand they now required that they fight for the Brotherhood as payment. It was as if a person had very little value outside of what they could do for the Brotherhood. And it was because of that Locke refused to fight and die for whatever cause the Brotherhood fought for. _"No, I'll die fighting for a cause I know will restore peace and prosperity to the Wasteland. A cause bigger and worthier than the Brotherhood of Steel"_

Once Ed realized what being a part of the Brotherhood of Steel entailed he was ecstatic and couldn't wait to get into the action. Now he could fight monsters and bad guys alongside his best friends! Something he had been dreaming of doing for a very long time. He knew that he would be saving the Wasteland and his friends back at Square Bot City from the villains of the Wasteland. Plus he got to keep his shotgun and giant club! Also Paladin Stone seemed to have taken a liking to him. Something about how the big and stupid ones make for the best frontline soldiers. Ed wasn't quite sure what he meant but figured it had to be something good. He hoped that Sarah and Double-D were still doing okay as well as the rest of his friends. Ed hated the fact that by being away from them that there was no way he could protect them. That is until he reasoned that maybe killing bad guys with the Brotherhood of Steel will still help them since there will be less bad people in the world. Ed decided that he would stick with that until he once again reunited with his friends. _"Oh boy I will have so many stories to tell them! And then I'll have to give Double-D an extra big hug as well as baby sister and then I will eat gravy, and butter toast, and…"_ Ed continued to think (more like ramble) himself of what he would do when he got back.

* * *

**A/N:** _Yes, it's true I'm back. I wrote a long chapter so hopefully that will suffice until I get the next chapter posted. If you haven't already (and decided not to listen to my author's note) I would strongly suggest that you reread Saviors of the Wastes from the beginning as I have revised the other chapters to some extent. Also, I won't be accepting any OCs and I'm not sure that I will be using all of the ones I have already received except the ones I've already used/using of course._ _Thanks for the reviews and for any fans who haven't completely abandoned this story; thanks for sticking around through my long almost permanent hiatus. And for those who did give up on the story I don't blame you for doing so. But I do hope that this new chapter was enough to rekindle your interest in the story. Also if you come across any spelling or grammatical error of any kind please let me know about it by telling me which chapter and approximately where at so I can fix it. Anyways I'll catch you guys later, I think I'm going to go ahead and get a head start on the next chapter._

_-Evil Tim 17_


	14. Chapter 13: Hour of Reckoning

**Chapter 13: Hour of Reckoning**

**A/N: **_Just a warning but there will be drug/alcohol usage in this chapters as well as slight references to sexual acts._

* * *

A new week passed by quickly for Edd and the colonists as they worked diligently to implement all of the new rules and regulations that he and his counsel had decided upon. They had already started erecting the town hall, courthouse, jail, and the local bar also known as the Rusty Anchor (Lee's idea). Rolf was able to get a hold of several Brahmin and with the help of a few local farmers started up a ranch. The new post roads and rest stations were being set-up as well. One every five miles give or take with security checkpoints every four miles. Each station would be run by thirteen colonists who would remain well-supplied and armed to ensure safe travels for the caravans and each security checkpoint would have a few guards. The standard of living also rose among the colonists as a new sanitation system was implemented and they were able to further improve their lean-to shelters to better suite their needs. They also received another fifty-three colonists to help expedite the construction process. Edd improved his Headquarters and decided to cut down on his staff some to only include his fellow Peach Creekers, Marcus (who now also acts as Edd's bodyguard), and a secretary to take notes during meetings. The rest he sent to aid in other projects across the colony.

With all of the new advancements and projects in the colony to keep people occupied everyone soon forgot about the three deaths from the past week; except for those closely involved as they still hadn't gotten over the fact that Kevin had betrayed them all and murdered three people. Nazz was affected by it the most as she had lost both her boyfriend and one of her closest childhood friends in hardly an hour. Nazz wasn't alone though as Sarah stayed close to her friend except when asked for some space. All of the others periodically checked up on her as well and gave her their regards. Despite the deep fractures in their once close-knit group they were still holding on.

Nazz got up early in the morning and got dressed into her nurse scrubs. She started to make her way to the Aid Station where she chose to work to become a nurse. Her mentor was Kelly Snow who was one of the sweetest people Nazz had ever met. Kelly was tall, a brunette, pretty, about twenty years of age, and cared deeply for her patients and just people in general. Nazz had learned that Kelly's mother was a nurse back in her Vault which is where she picked up her skills and charm. However both her parents died shortly after they left the Vault when they were attacked by a swarm of zombies Kelly claimed. Nazz wasn't so sure at first and though maybe she was hallucinating but then again why would Kelly lie to her? That and she had already seen some pretty crazy stuff in the Wasteland so who's to say that zombies don't exist. The other day Kelly deemed Nazz worthy of taking care of her own patient without any outside aid. Nazz was nervous as walked through the mess of lean-tos and busy colonists almost getting knocked over by a large man who obviously didn't notice her as he didn't even apologize.

"Rude." Nazz said to herself as she continued her walk. She passed by a few people that she had met since moving to the colony and said hello before quickly moving on. She wasn't sure why she was so nervous they never got anything worse than a broken arm which even that was relatively easy to handle.

"_I'll probably end up with someone suffering from heat exhaustion or a cold."_ Nazz thought.

Nazz's nervousness subsided as she saw Kelly's cheerful face and received her usual greeting of "Good morning Nazzerine!" and a hug. Nazz wasn't sure at first when Kelly called her Nazzerine since usually only her mother or father called her that when she was in trouble which was rare to begin with. However the name grew on Nazz and she accepted it but most likely because she could never get mad at Kelly; she was too sweet.

"So Nazz are you ready for your big day?" Kelly beamed.

"I think so; I mean I've had an awesome mentor helping me out for the last week." Nazz replied happily.

"Aww, you're too kind! Okay well your patient is Mr. Lewis who is suffering from a fractured wrist. Hurt himself in a construction accident, poor guy. Anyways, this should be a piece of cake for you." Kelly finished.

Relief swept over Nazz; she could handle a fractured wrist no problem! "That's not so tough!" Nazz said confidently. There were several gunshots in the distance but Nazz and Kelly ignored them as the firing range was close by. The first time Nazz heard the gunshots she dropped to the floor only to have Kelly pick her back up and explain to her it was just the firing range.

"Yeah it'll be easy. Well he's over there waiting for you, I'll check up on you later Nazzerine!" Kelly said as she went back to attending her own patients.

Nazz walked over to Mr. Lewis who was a middle aged black male. He was strong looking and the pain barely seemed to faze him.

"Hello sir. My name is Nazz and I'll be assisting you. Now could you explain to me exactly what happened?"

"Well I was on a ladder when Joe was trying to hand me some more nails. And the next thing I know the ladder is leaning sideways and her I go tumbling off of it. I guess maybe he let go of it or something. Anyways I tried to break my fall with my right hand and I guess in the process fractured my wrist or something." Mr. Lewis finished.

"Well, all done Mr. Lewis!" Nazz said happily as she examined her work.

"Wait what?" Mr. Lewis was shocked to see his wrist all wrapped up.

"Yeah it's a trick Kelly taught me so that it takes the patients mind off of the pain. It seemed to work well with you." Nazz explained.

"Oh well thank you! Now when can I get back to work?"

"I'd say give it a week and see how it treats you. That or only work with your left hand and try to stay away from ladders." Nazz said smiling.

Mr. Lewis laughed and replied, "Sounds like a plan. Well thanks again Nazz!"

Nazz had passed the test. Her patient would make a full recovery and become a productive member of society once more! She was ecstatic and now she wanted to have more patients of her own. She really enjoyed helping others and seeing them walk out of the aid station in better condition than when they arrived. Kelly walked over and noticed Nazz smiling.

"So will Mr. Lewis be making a full recovery?" Kelly asked.

"Definitely! So when do I get my next patient?" Nazz asked.

"Soon enough I'm sure." Kelly answered.

Just as Nazz's spirits were at an all-time high the unthinkable happened; suddenly several frightened men ran into the aid station carrying a man who was bleeding from several different bullet entries in his torso.

"We're under attack! Please nurse he's been shot up bad you have to help him!" one of the men begged.

All happiness melted away from Kelly's face and was replaced by the most serious face Nazz had seen on her before. Kelly was in the zone.

"Place him on the gurney over there! And I'll take it from here! If there are any more wounded then get them here as fast as possible without killing them!" Kelly ordered.

The men simply nodded and stumbled out of the aid station. Nazz was so scared that she was frozen in place. She looked out and saw smoke rising from the several hundred yards away. Nazz could also see a string of more wounded patients heading their way. The other nurses were scrambling around as well as they prepared themselves for the onslaught of dying humans. Today truly was going to be a test for Nazz and deep down she knew that she wasn't ready for this. Suddenly Kelly's grip brought her back to reality.

"Nazzerine! I need you to focus okay! Listen I need you to get me some scissors, stitches, and extra bandages! And after that I need you to help prep the other gurneys for more patients! We're going to have our hand's full today girl!" Kelly concluded as she returned her attention to her patient.

Nazz thought about Mr. Lewis. "I can do this!" Nazz said aloud then did as she was told.

* * *

Rolf was leaning against the makeshift fence they had put up to house the Brahmin. He was writing a note to Liz back in Square Bot City. It confused Rolf as to how they even really got to know each other. Rolf was sent on a simple errand by Edd to pick up some supplies while his hands were full doing something else. Rolf agreed and that's when he met Liz. She was two years younger than Rolf but there was something about her that Rolf couldn't get over. How full of life she was despite her harrowing tale she told Rolf. How her and her parents and older brother had lost everything during the war. How horrible Vault life had been on her mother and their journey to Square Bot City where she lost her brother to a monstrous scorpion. It made Rolf feel silly for feeling so depressed about losing his farm and animals. After that day Rolf visited her shop every day and told her about his life and how he was planning on going to the colony.

_"Rolf is going to the colony. Liz you should leave behind Square Bot City to enjoy a life of adventure. Rolf will protect you." Rolf assured._

_"Rolf you know how much I want to leave this city but my parents simply refuse to let me go. They still haven't fully accepted James's death." Liz explained._

_Rolf looked down at the ground and kicked around a small pebble._

_"I'm sorry Rolf; I desperately wish I could go. Maybe my parents will let me go when the next round of new colonists leaves but until then we can at least write to each other." Liz said then dug around underneath the shop counter and pulled out an ink pen and a small stack of paper. "Here my parents won't miss it and this way we can stay in contact!" Liz said happily as she handed the materials to Rolf._

_Rolf looked at the writing materials and placed them in his pack. "Rolf will write to you as often as Rolf can." Rolf said as he gave her a hug over the counter._

_Liz returned the embrace and said, "Me too Rolf. I love you Rolf!" Liz said._

_"Rolf loves you too Liz."_

Rolf continued to lean back on the fence and think about Liz and what he should say next in his letter. The mail left tomorrow so he had to get it finished today. Suddenly one of the other ranchers yelled out, "Hey Rolf what's that over yonder?"

Rolf stuffed the pen and paper back into his pants pocket and turned around. Rolf and the others had since leaving the Vault changed their attire. Rolf donned a pair of tattered rawhide trousers, a grimy wife-beater, rawhide boots, and a straw hat; he also held onto his custom-made armor just in case. He saw a cloud of dust rising in the distance heading towards the colony. Confused Rolf shouldered his hunting rifle and looked through the new scope he had installed onto it a few days ago. He looked through the powerful scope and was able to make out several vehicles heading their way. They were beat up and looked like war vehicles as they were scarred and rugged looking. Suddenly the passenger's window lowered of the lead vehicle and a figure popped out. He was donned in makeshift armor and upon his head sat a tattered red cap. He cheered and raised his assault rifle in the air letting out several bursts of automatic fire.

"Kevin!" was all Rolf could say before taking off towards the colony and the oncoming invaders.

* * *

**One Week Earlier:**

Kevin woke up to find himself in a crude, makeshift tent. His head was throbbing from he had been struck and he was still groggy. He slowly sat up and observed his surroundings and noticed that his stuff was gone and could hear voices. He crawled towards the entrance of the tent and peeked around. He saw several people walking about in makeshift armor similar to the ones they saw in the junkyard. One of them noticed him and said in a rough voice, "Looks like pretty boy is up!"

That gathered everyone's attention and made Kevin uncomfortable but to try to mask it he stepped out of the tent and got up.

"Yeah I'm up now where the hell am I and where's my stuff?" Kevin asked angrily.

"Whoa! Chill kid! You'll get your stuff back in time but first you need to meet the boss." A woman told him.

"Fine then. Take me to your boss!" Kevin demanded.

"Whatever kid. Come on follow me." A zombie looking man with a raspy voice said.

Kevin was so confused by this point. First he gets attacked; wakes up in a strange camp full of strange people and now a zombie is talking to him! Could this get any weirder? Despite it all Kevin followed the zombie through the camp and towards a larger tent in the middle. This place was so different to Kevin. People were all wearing the same makeshift armor with the symbol of an orange pentagram. Some were injecting themselves with a large needle filled with some substance unknown to Kevin. Others were cleaning their weapons and firing at human corpses tied to posts. The sight was sick but the raspy voice of the zombie got Kevin's attention.

"How does it make you feel kid? Seeing all of this cruelty?"

At first it made Kevin sick to his stomach but then he thought about it. In many ways Kevin was just as bad as the rest of these people. In fact deep down aren't all humans capable of the same cruelty?

"I don't know doesn't really strike a chord I guess." Kevin replied.

"Hmm, not sure if you're bluffing or if you're as sick as the rest of us." The zombie replied as they reached the tent entrance.

The zombie okayed Kevin and they opened the large tent flaps and let them in. Kevin looked around and saw human body parts hanging from the ceiling and nailed to posts. For some reason it didn't really surprise Kevin. In fact he should have suspected something like this. He continued to follow the zombie and saw a man sitting on a throne made of bones at the end of a long red carpet. It was dark inside the tent besides several torches that helped to produce enough light to see the path. Once Kevin got closer he could see that the man was probably around six and a quarter feet tall, muscular, had cruel, dark brown eyes, wore armor made of human bones, metal, and leather, atop his head sat a crown made of bloody bones along with dirty locks of brown hair that fell to his shoulders. His face and arms were covered in scars and an aura of pure evil permeated from him. He stared down Kevin as he approached his throne.

The zombie bowed and said, "My lord the prisoner has awoken and wishes to speak with you."

"Is that so? Then let him speak!" the man's voice reverberated throughout the spacious tent. It was deep, dreadful, and sent shivers up Kevin's spine.

The zombie bowed one more time then quickly left the tent as if he had experienced the same feeling as Kevin. Kevin started to tremble a bit before he finally spoke up saying, "I came to figure out where I'm at and where my stuff is at? The fear in Kevin's voice was obvious as he continued to shake before perhaps the evilest man in the world.

The evil man continued to drill holes through Kevin with his dark eyes. He leaned forward slightly and asked, "Are you scared Kevin? I think you are. In fact I think you try to look tough because deep down you're a broken, scared, little boy!" the man finished as he laughed. His laugh almost worse than his voice. Kevin continued to tremble before him. He wasn't even sure how to respond to the amazingly accurate claims. He was also confused as to how he knew his name unless they searched his stuff and found his name somewhere on it.

He laughed again at Kevin then said, "You don't have to respond but yes I can answer your questions. You're currently in Hell and I'm the Devil himself as for your stuff it's in the armory. But I have a few more questions for you Kevin and this time you'll have to answer these. Have you ever been wronged by someone before? Would you kill to prove a point? And do you still love the person who wronged you?"

The longer Kevin remained in this creature's presence the more frightened he became. Kevin was on the verge of tears but finally spoke up and said, "Yes I have been wronged by someone and yes I would and have killed to prove a point and yes, I do still love her!" Kevin replied then broke down sobbing.

"Get up you insolent whore and stop your sobbing! Crying won't get you anywhere in Hell! You want to escape from Hell? Then you'll do exactly as I tell you! As the Devil tells you!" he yelled.

Kevin calmed himself down some and looked back up at the Devil who sat before him on his throne of bones, in utter darkness save a few torches. Kevin wondered if this was what Hell was actually like.

"I'm sorry." Kevin apologized.

"We're not all that different you and I. You want to win her back? Then join me."

His voice went from dreadful to enticing and it confused Kevin to no end. But maybe he could solve all of his problems maybe he could win Nazz back with his help.

"I'll do whatever it takes to win her back." Kevin said just loud enough for the two of them to hear. Kevin's new employer smiled evilly at Kevin and said, "I knew you would now go to the armory and retrieve your stuff and new set of armor. And now go and do as your flesh desires for it will set you free."

Kevin obeyed and got up. He started walking down the long carpet towards the entrance and it was with those few words that Kevin sold his soul to the Devil. He exited the tent and asked one of the guards where the armory was which he quickly pointed out to Kevin, as if he'd done it a thousand times. Kevin thanked the guard and continued his journey towards the armory. He passed by many people who gave him dirty looks. Kevin wondered if they too had gone through a similar experience and assumed that they all had. Kevin ignored their glares and marched onward until he finally arrived at the armory. The armory looked a bit sturdier than most of the other buildings in the encampment. Made mostly of rusty sheet metal and cloth it resembled a small fortress. Two heavily armed guards stood guarding the entry.

Kevin walked up to them and said, "I was sent by the Devil to retrieve my armor and weapons."

The guard simply opened the tent flap and allowed Kevin to pass without even so much as looking at him as if Kevin were nothing more than a bothersome fly. Kevin blew off the guard's behavior and entered the Armory where he was amazed by the amount and range of weapons available. The walls were covered in assault rifles, pistols, submachine guns, several light machine guns, a few RPGs, and a M2 Browning. There were crates filled with grenades of different shapes, sizes, and killing capacity, as well as hundreds of box of ammo of different calibers. Kevin walked around a bit more and found a section containing a slew of hand-to-hand weapons such as clubs, swords, knives, spears, maces, and hammers.

Kevin was so absorbed by the plethora of weapons that he failed to notice the armorer sneak up on him.

"Hey kid! Either pick your gear and leave or I'll be forced to beat your ass!" he yelled harshly.

Kevin snapped back to reality and nodded quickly before heading over to look at the assault rifles. He found one very similar to his own but in much better condition. Next he chose a switchblade and lucky enough found his snub nose amongst the pistols. After selecting his weapons he found a set of armor that fit him well enough, thanked the armorer (who cursed at him) and left. Kevin was feeling a lot more confident now that he had his own set of armor and weapons and at least looked the part to some extent. However since he didn't really know anyone or where he was exactly Kevin decided to explore the camp and see if he could get some answers.

Kevin meandered through the camp looking for someone who'd at least listen to him for more than five seconds before telling him to "Fuck off!" or "Beat it kid!" Kevin spent what felt like an hour just searching and still no answers until finally he heard someone call out to him.

"Hey kid you lost or something?" a rough voice called out from behind Kevin.

Kevin turned and saw a group of four people. Two men, one zombie man, and a woman sitting around a campfire.

"Uhh, yeah sort of." Kevin replied.

The man signaled for him to come over. "Get over here kid!"

Kevin obeyed and walked over to the group and took a seat by their campfire next to the zombie.

"So you're new around here huh?" the same guy asked Kevin.

"Is it that obvious?" Kevin replied.

"Yeah, it's that obvious. So kid what's your name and what's your story?" He asked.

"The name's Kevin and well I was wandering the Wastes when someone knocked me out and brought me here." Kevin replied.

"Is that so? That doesn't happen every day, in fact most of the time we just kill people like that. Guess that patrol though you looked the part of a Raider."

"Maybe. So where am I exactly and who are you guys?" Kevin asked next happy that he had found someone willing to listen to him.

"Well you my friend your current location is Death Valley and you're kicking it with the Devil's Company my friend. And by the way the name's Jason, that's Ricko (pointing to the other human male) that's Grub (pointing at the zombie) and that pretty thing over there is Charlotte. Welcome to Razor Squad Kevin, you're one of our new replacements."

Kevin knew that there had to be some catch as to why they were being so nice to him but it didn't really matter now that his questions were answered. In fact maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

"I see so what exactly does that mean for me then?" Kevin asked.

"It means that if our squad is ever called into action you'll be tagging along on the raid with the rest of us. Lucky for you though we took heavy casualties on our last raid so it might be awhile before we get sent back out again." Jason said.

"So what do we do until then?" Kevin asked.

The entire group laughed before Ricko replied, "How about we show you!" Ricko pulled out what looked like a normal piece of chewing gum and handed it to Kevin.

Kevin looked at the gum then back at Ricko then back at the gum. "You're joking right? You guys chew gum?" Kevin asked incredulously.

Grub laughed, "The kid doesn't even know what it is! Boy you're about to learn a lot about this world!" Grub pulled out what looked like a normal inhaler and inhaled the contents. Almost immediately Grub began to smile and started laughing hysterically at nothing in particular. Kevin could tell that he was obviously high, causing Kevin to look down at the gum in his hand. _"Just this one time won't hurt." _Kevin thought then popped the gum in his mouth.

Kevin could the effects almost immediately and he became euphoric. He felt so happy for no reason at all. His life sucked yet he felt so damn good! Kevin felt powerful and energetic like he had never felt before. He wanted to run a marathon or do hundreds of push-ups it honestly didn't matter which he just had to do something! Kevin decided to try the latter and started pumping out push-ups but couldn't keep count as his thoughts were racing too fast. After a few minutes the effects began to wear off and Kevin fell back feeling exhausted. The others by that time were high themselves and continued to offer Kevin a wide variety of drugs. Kevin tried them all, After Burner Gum, Physco, Jet, and Voodoo or "that crazy local shit" as Ricko referred to it as.

Kevin felt like he was floating and all of his past troubles had melted away with the help of the powerful drugs he'd taken. Kevin noticed a small wooden crate close-by filled with several bottles of alcohol. Kevin fumbled around inside the crate until he finally got his hands on one of the bottles. Kevin popped the cap on the bottle and starting downing its contents. The liquid burnt Kevin's throat and stomach making him gag and almost throw up. Kevin leaned back and started laughing then looked over at Grub who was also laughing.

"Dude what the hell are you anyways, a zombie?" Kevin asked.

"I ain't no brain munching zombie you bastard! I'm a ghoul!" Grub replied before grabbing a bottle of alcohol for himself.

Kevin laughed, "Oh that sucks." Kevin sighed a sigh of contentment and leaned back against his seat.

They had to have been doing this for hours by now. It was starting to get late in the day and Kevin was beginning to feel the side effects of the many drugs he had taken. He could feel the pain in his arms from where he had injected the needles as well as the ravaging effects of the powerful alcohol. Kevin felt sick but knew that this night wasn't over yet. He looked over at Charlotte who was currently jetting. Kevin decided that despite the fact that she looked like she hadn't bathed in weeks she wasn't that bad looking of a girl. Messy black hair, cute face, tall, lean, and just downright attractive. Maybe it was the drugs and alcohol toying with his mind but Kevin didn't really care by this point. She noticed Kevin staring and waved him over. Kevin obediently got up and walked over to her.

Kevin sat down next to her and said, "So what'd ya need babe?"

"Ohh, I just saw ya looking my way and had a question for ya." She said seductively.

"And what would that question be?" Kevin replied eagerly.

Charlotte pulled Kevin in for a deep kiss then said, "Let's take this elsewhere shall we?" Charlotte smiled then got up. She took Kevin's hand and led him to her tent. The Devil's enticing words embedded themselves into Kevin's mind,"_…now go and do as your flesh desires for it will set you free."_ The other were either too stoned or drunk to notice Kevin and Charlotte leaving. Kevin followed her into her tent where he spent the rest of the night doing just as he was told.

Several more days passed by as Kevin continued to familiarize himself with the culture and layout of the camp. He made more friends with some of the other Raider Squads and continued on his self-destructive path. During one of their Raider parties Kevin told his friends about the colony close by and suggested that they pay a visit someday. Kevin's squad leader brought the suggestion before the Devil who approved of the raid and promoted Kevin for coming up with the idea. And since Kevin knew exactly where the colony was nestled at he would lead the way. Kevin felt honored that he was to be in the lead scout vehicle and it felt good knowing that he'd be exacting more vengeance upon the people he hated more than ever now. Nazz had only crossed Kevin's mind a few times since he left, in fact he wasn't even how he felt about her anymore. But that didn't matter to him anymore he needed to prepare himself for his first raid.

Kevin spent the last two days before the raid going over the general layout of the colony, the expected force size, their weaponry, and defenses. Though Kevin hadn't seen the place for several days he figured that they couldn't have made too much progress between now and then. Three Raider Squads (eight members to a squad) would take four vehicles to attack the colony. Kevin, along with his Squad Leader Kraven, Charlotte, and Jason would ride in the lead scout Humvee. Followed by Grub, Ricko, and the two other members of Razor Squad Tick and Graze would ride in a second Humvee armed with a M2 Browning. The two other squads Graveyard and Havok would take two APCs both armed with light machine guns and firing ports.

Once they gathered together the necessary supplies for the raid the three squads set out at the end of the first week since Kevin's arrival. They left early in the morning hoping that they would be able to catch the sleeping colonists off guard. However they ran into some vehicle troubles which put them behind schedule putting the attack during daylight. Despite the fact that they would be visible and vulnerable they decided to continue on with the raid. Their orders were simple; pillage first then burn. Take as many captives as possible and don't return empty handed.

* * *

"Three! Two! One! Winner!" a man shouted as Lee crushed her opponent in an arm wrestling match. The defeated man left the Rusted Anchor with a sore arm and bruised ego. Lee laughed as she polished off her beer.

"Who's next?" she asked looking around that the bar folk surrounding her.

"I'll take you on!" A familiar voice cried out. Lee looked over as her sister May filled the empty seat in front of her.

"Bitch, Imma make you pay for those words!" Lee exclaimed as she rolled up her sleeve and placed her right arm on the table.

"We'll see!" May said as she gripped Lee's hand and prepared herself.

The two Kanker sisters both took up jobs waitressing at the bar before it was even deemed finished. They both enjoyed the atmosphere as it was familiar to them both. After living in a trailer park for several years and becoming familiar with the type of men who hung out at bars (thanks to their mother's taste in men) they grew accustomed to the gritty and coarse environment. Though Edd wouldn't allow any hard liquor or spirits he did allow beer at least. The bar was by far the biggest hit since the sanitation system. It was a place where people could gamble away their valuables, drink beer, cuss, and let the stress of the day melt away. Since arriving at the colony May and Lee trashed their Vault 117 jumpsuits and sold Rolf's armor. They both donned some comfortable clothing. Lee now wears a long leather coat with the arms removed, a white t-shirt underneath, a pair of reinforced pants and combat boots. May wears a dark blue jacket, along with some ripped up blue jeans tucked into shin-high combat boots.

The two females stared each other down while the referee counted down.

"Three! Two! One! Go-"but was stopped when a man short of breath burst into the bar and shouted, "We're under attack! Quick, grab your weapons! We need to put together a defensive line at the Northern Guard Post!"

The man ran back out of the bar followed by several of the bar patrons with weapons in hand.

"We'll finish this later!" Lee said as she grabbed her nail bait and cocked her 10mm Pistol.

"Yeah and when I win you own me a beer!" May returned.

"You're on sis!" Lee yelled as they both ran out of the bar together to join the fight.

Edd and Marcus were at the new Merchant's Hub they had set up for the Square Bot City caravans as well as for any traveling merchant's that came across the colony. There was one in particular that Edd was interested in meeting as it is rumored that he too came from a Vault nearby Vault 117. The fact that merchants traveled the Wastes just to make a quick buck baffled Edd. Then again he supposed that they were the equivalent of someone opening up a small business. There were risks in both scenarios though the traveling merchant probably had more to lose. Edd also finally got around to visiting the doctor concerning his dreams but essentially there was little to be done about them as the colony lacked the medical expertise to deal with such issues. _"Maybe we'll get a psychologist eventually but until then I suppose I'll have to tough this one out." _Edd thought. The dreams were still occurring though not as bad as before but bad enough that Edd was still losing several hours of sleep.

The duo finally came upon the Merchant Hub and quickly found the guy they were looking for. He was tall, green eyed, short black hair, and was also wearing a tattered Vault 119 jumpsuit (Edd was still wearing his Vault 117 jumpsuit) along with a black leather jacket. Edd and Marcus approached the young man who seemed to be around Edd's age.

"Hello sir my name is Edd or Double-D whichever you prefer. Anyways, I was curious about what you have to offer as well as the specifics on your Vault." Edd asked as he shook the young man's hand.

"Hello Edd! The name's Marcus and I sell weapons, armor, medical supplies, and some odds and ends."

"Small world my name is Marcus too. You got a last name kid?" the other Marcus asked.

"Yeah, Rolen. I could go by that if you prefer?" Marcus offered.

"Yeah Rolen's good. Go by that, there's only one Marcus in this town."

"Okay Rolen it is then! Anyways you wanted to know more about my Vault?" Rolen asked.

"Yes, please if you don't mind that is?" Edd replied.

"Well it's in the mountains like most other Vaults. Same general set-up as well I'm assuming. Honestly there wasn't really anything special about my Vault. It was meant to house a small city's worth of people but unfortunately as far as I know I'm the last surviving member of my Vault." Rolen finished.

"What happened to everyone else?" Edd asked.

"Well after being cooped up inside that thing for so many years one of our scientists went nuts and filled the air ducts with poisonous gas, luckily I was able to escape along with a few other members. We traveled a bit looking for supplies but we weren't prepared for the Wasteland and before too much longer I was the only one left standing. So I gathered up as much gear as I could carry and decided that I would do whatever I could to help others survive in the Wasteland. That's why I'm a merchant. I sell people the gear they need to survive for a reasonable price and give them what advice I can."

"That's very noble of you and I'm sorry to hear about your Vault. We've lost several people from our Vault as well." Edd said.

"It's a tough world out there. You never know what to expect-" Suddenly the sounds of automatic fire and screams filled the air. They all turned around and saw smoke rising from the North side of the colony.

"We're being attacked? Marcus quick we need to alert the guards and set-up a defense! Go spread the news and I'll head to the front and see what I can do!" Edd ordered.

Marcus did as he was told without question and ran off towards the West side of the colony.

Edd was starting to make his way North towards the fight when Rolen called out, "Hey I'm coming with you!"

Edd stopped to face Rolen and said, "No, you don't have to get involved! You best leave now in case the invaders head this way!" Edd warned.

Rolen suddenly strapped on a belt of grenades and hefted his CZ53 Personal Minigun. _"Eddy would be jealous."_ Edd thought then said, "Very well then. Please, follow me!" Edd and Rolen took off as fast as they could towards the North where a battle was raging unlike any of them had ever seen before.

* * *

Sarah was resting in her tent after work musing on the events of the day. _"Just another day."_ Sarah thought to herself. She missed Jimmy and wished he were still around. She never realized how much time she actually spent with him daily. She hardly knew what to do with herself since Nazz started her new job at the aid station as she was now working for most of the day. In fact Sarah hardly worked at all. She believed that Edd was behind that. _"Maybe he thinks I'm still too depressed to work?" _Sarah thought more about how her mood had been since Jimmy's death. She was certainly a lot quieter and it felt like forever since she had gotten angry at anyone. Granted Ed was gone now but she had started to miss her big brother. _"Ed, you may be an idiot but I don't know what I would do if anything bad happened to you." _Sarah felt as though all the things in her life that she held dear were being taken away from her. Maybe she's being punished for always acting like a spoiled brat. Whatever the reason she only wished now that she had spent more time with Jimmy and told Ed that she loved him more. Sarah's sobering thoughts were brought to an end with the sound of gunfire and the roar of several vehicle engines.

"Raiders!" Sarah said aloud as she slid on her spiked knuckles and loaded her 10mm Pistol and put on Rolf's armor over her normal clothes which consisted of a pair of reinforced pants, a white shirt, and some boots. She'd give them more than a piece of her mind! Sarah ran out of her tent and realized how close she was to the battle. Hardly fifty yards away from her she could see a group of Raiders hiding behind a parked Humvee armed with a machine gun of some sort. Sarah decided that she would try and sneak around them and catch them all by surprise. Sarah was glad that in her free time she had taken up that marksmanship class at the firing range. It would prove to be invaluable to her today.

* * *

The battle was raging on the Northern end of the colony. The Raiders charged in full speed with their vehicles destroying the primitive barricades that had been set up and injuring several guards in the process. The two Humvees were used to set up a blockade and gave cover fire while the slower APCs moved into position to unload their crew. Ricko was on the M2 Browning lighting up the nearby lean-tos and tents, killing several colonists. The guards returned fire but were poorly armed and took too many casualties forcing them to fall back and regroup. Graveyard and Razor squads set up a defensive line while Havok squad moved in to do what they do best, rape, pillage, and burn.

Rolf was running full speed across the open plains heading towards the invaders. He needed to find somewhere we he could conceal himself yet still be able to hit his targets. Rolf found a nearby fallen tree that was roughly two-hundred yards from where the Raiders had parked their vehicles. He could clearly see a Raider opening up with a heavy machine gun as well as several others who had taken cover behind their vehicles. Rolf watched as the guards retreated and watched in horror as several of them were sprayed by automatic fire. Blood and pieces of the guards splattered the nearby tents. Rage took over as Rolf cocked his rifle and took aim using the fallen tree to steady his aim. Rolf acquired his first target a Raider on crouching next to the right front tire of the Humvee with the M2 Browning. He was reloading his assault rifle and completely exposed from Rolf's angle. Rolf took aim and fired just as the Raider popped up to fire again.

* * *

Edd and Rolen were just arriving on the scene when a wave of guards started running towards them. Edd saw a Humvee with a machine gun mounted on top. The gunner swiveled his machine gun around and fired upon the guards. Edd and Rolen immediately took cover behind a cluster of tents to avoid being grazed by the gunfire. They could hear the screams of the dying and injured men and watched as the remaining guards ran past them. "This can't be good!" Edd whispered to avoid being heard.

"I have a plan I'll grab their attention and you go back and rally those guards. I should be able to hold them off long enough for you to get a counterattack organized." Rolen suggested.

"If you're certain." Edd said nervously.

"I am, now go before they advance any further!" Rolen ordered.

Edd obeyed and snuck through the tents back towards the rear line of defense. Once Rolen was certain Edd was a safe distance away he peaked around the corner and saw four Raiders heading his way. He started up his Minigun and popped around the corner. The Raiders cringed at the sight of the Minigun and before they could open fire were turned into piles of human mulch by the beast of a weapon. Simultaneously Rolen watched as another Raider popped up from behind the Humvee with the M2 Browning as he was finishing up the group of Raiders in front of him. The Raider took aim at Rolen knowing that there was no way he could escape. He would make this guy pay for cutting down half of Havok Squad!

Rolen knew that he was a dead man. He just hoped that his contribution would be enough for Edd to return to beat back the rest of the Raiders. Suddenly the Raider drop back behind the Humvee with a bullet to the neck! Rolen saw blood spray into the air and took advantage of the moment. Rolen threw himself back behind cover just as the heavy machine opened fire and churned up the irradiated dirt Rolen had been standing on just mere seconds ago! Rolen mentally thanked whoever shot the Raider and fell back into a defensive position to await the arrival of Edd and the reinforcements.

May, Lee and a band of bar patrons were weaving their way through the tight cluster of tents and lean-tos in an attempt to aid in the defense of the colony. Their small band came upon Edd and a group of guards stationed near the construction site of the town hall. Lee also noticed a group of guards and colonists being led by an extremely short man. "That's that Marcus guy that's always hanging around Edd!" Lee shouted.

"Well at least he's doing something useful for once!" May commented as they made their way towards the sizable gathering of guards and colonists.

Their numbers began to swell as the guards, colonists, and bar patrons gathered together. Edd surveyed the force before him, most of whom were just your "Average Joe". They were armed with a variety of weaponry ranging from simple knives to one guy who was sporting a Thompson submachine gun. Overall they had the weapons to defeat the Raiders, the numbers, and in Edd's mind the skill required but they needed a leader. Edd felt crestfallen as he realized that he wasn't a five star general, he hardly even knew anything about military tactics or weaponry! The sounds of gunfire continued to fill the air followed by the harrowing screams of a dying woman. They were getting closer and Edd knew that the longer he stood idle the more deaths he would have to account for. Edd noticed May, Lee, and Marcus in the crowd and he looked to them for guidance of some sort. Edd also remembered that Rolen was still out there fighting the good fight. The crowd stared eagerly at Edd waiting for him to give the word for them to attack. Edd decided to give them a speech.

"My fellow colonists and friends! I uhh… well I just wanted to say that you're some of the bravest people I know. I count myself as lucky for having an extraordinary group of people to lead. I hate to admit that I am unskilled the art of warfare but I am not afraid to join you all on the field of battle. I know that we can beat these Raiders back and we'll show them that messing with us was a bad idea. Marcus, May, Lee! I want you three to each take a group. May, you flank around the left, and uhh, Lee! You take your group and flank around the right! Marcus, I'll join you in an attack right up the middle so we can meet back up with Rolen! Now make haste everyone! Before more innocent blood is spilled!" Edd finished.

The people gave a cheer and did as they were told. Edd rejoined Marcus who patted Edd on the back and said, "Well you definitely need to work on giving speeches. You were shaking like a leaf and could have been a bit more enthusiastic but we can work on that later! Now come on Napoleon you have a battle to win!" Marcus exclaimed as they charged back towards Rolen.

* * *

Rolf was now choosing his second target, the man in the machine gun turret. If anything Rolf could at least keep him suppressed or frighten him to give the colonists a chance when they counterattacked. Rolf prayed that they would do it soon while the Raiders were in such a weak position. Rolf knew he only had four shots left before he would have to reload. If he didn't make them count the machine gunner would surely discover his position and open up on him. "Rolf will kill this man even if it's the last thing that Rolf does!" Rolf said aloud. Rolf took aim once more and once he felt confident enough took the shot. Too low but it certainly got the gunner's attention. Rolf pulled back the bolt ejecting the used cartridge while simultaneously prepping the next round for loading. Rolf pushed the bolt forward loading his third out of five rounds. Rolf took aim again. Luckily the gunner still hadn't found him but the sun would give him away if his next shot didn't. Rolf aimed higher this time, took aim, and then fired. Another miss but only by a few inches. Rolf could see the fear in the Raider's eyes but then it changed from fear to an evil grin. Rolf knew he had been spotted! The gunner opened up on Rolf's position forcing Rolf to hug the dirt. Rounds burrowed themselves into the fallen tree trunk and dirt around Rolf. Luckily for Rolf the gunner seemed to be a terrible shot at longer range.

The gunner stopped firing momentarily_; "He must be reloading his gun! Now it's Rolf's chance!"_ Rolf thought. Rolf reloaded and took aim once again. The Raider's head kept bobbing up and down as he struggled to reload his weapon. Rolf fired but once again missed! "Curses!" Rolf shouted and loaded his last round. The gunner finished loading his weapon and was cocking the machine gun and taking aim once more. Rolf slowed his heart rate and took a deep breath. He took aim for the final time, held his breath and slowly squeezed the trigger.

* * *

Sarah slowly made her way through the maze of tents until she was certain she was behind the Raiders. She poked her head around the corner of a tent and saw several Raiders crouched behind the vehicles. She saw as the machine gunner let forth another barrage from his machine gun. She could hear the cries of the men unfortunate enough to be in its path. About eight Raiders broke cover and made their way deeper into the camp. Suddenly a loud whirring sound filled Sarah's ears as she continued to watch the Raiders. She could hear brief screams before she caught a glimpse of some red mist_. "Serves them right!"_ Sarah thought. Then another Raider was shot in the neck when he stood up to fire. Sarah continued to wait though. "Now isn't the time Sarah! Be patient." Sarah whispered to herself. She waited a few more seconds when a single bullet hit the machine gunner's turret. Followed shortly by another. Then the machine gunner opened fire, the noise of it deafened Sarah's hearing momentarily. Then it stopped and Sarah could hear cursing coming from the machine gunner's mouth. Another shot! And then just as the machine gunner finished reloading his weapon a fifth shot found its way into his skull, blowing his brains out the back of his head. The gunner slumped backwards as blood dripped from the hole in the back of his head onto the vehicle.

"Now's my chance!" Sarah said as she popped out from hiding and opened fire upon a group of four Raiders hiding behind the Humvee closest to her. They were caught completely off guard and Sarah quickly downed two of them. One that resembled a zombie and then a woman. The sight brought two thoughts to Sarah's mind. She wondered how Ed would have reacted if he saw that zombie and then why a woman would want to become a Raider. Sarah emptied the rest of her clip before taking cover again and reloading. They now knew where she was at. _"Maybe I could try moving over there?"_ Sarah though as she noticed another cluster of tents ten or so yards away from her current position. She weighed her options and decided that moving would be the best thing while they're still recovering from her first attack. Sarah sprinted across the opening and took cover against the closest tent. She looked around the corner to her left but failed to see the figure sneaking up to her on her right. Just as she was returning her head back to cover she felt a sharp pain across the right side of her face. She fell to her knees and through blurred eyes looked at her attacker. "Kevin…" Sarah managed before collapsing into the dirt.

* * *

Edd's plan of attack was going full speed now. All three groups were making great time now! May's group was closing in on the left. They had gotten into a quick firefight with a group of four Raiders and easily dispatched them while only taking one casualty. Luckily the guy was only shot in the arm and would live. They were nearing their objective when May saw the Raider's vehicles begin to pull out. Elated that they were retreating May told her group to open fire on the retreating Raiders. Lee's group on the right side also reached their destination and followed suit, also firing upon the defeated Raiders.

The worst case scenario was running through Edd's mind as he approached where he had left Rolen. He figured that he was dead for sure and that it would be his fault! A wave of relief however washed over Edd when he saw Rolen pop out from hiding and join in their group. Together Edd, Rolen, and Marcus led their group straight up the middle. They noticed that the heavy machine gunner was dead and that the Raiders were retreating! Edd and company opened fire upon the Raider scum to give them more incentive to leave. Rolen's Minigun tore up the rear of one of the unarmed Humvee as well as any Raiders caught sitting in the back. All three of the groups met up where the Raiders were just parked seconds ago. Spirits were high as everyone was giving one another high fives, hugs, and cheered loud enough for the Raiders to hear. Rolf also appeared from across the plain and joined the elated colonists in their merriment.

* * *

Nazz wiped the sweat that had accumulated on her forehead over the course of the battle. She was overjoyed when the last shots were fired but her nerves were fried after the horrors of what she had seen today. There were so many injured people that they ran out of gurneys for them in the first few minutes of the fight! Despite the combined experience of the nursing staff and doctors they were unable to save eleven people but the other twenty or so that had been injured were assured that they would make a full recovery. Kelly was covered in blood by the end of it all; they all were. Kelly walked over to Nazz and calmly said, "You did great Nazzerine, you really proved that you do have what it takes!" Kelly walked off to go clean herself up leaving Nazz to dwell on her encouraging words. Nazz stood there for a moment before beginning the cleanup process. There were plenty of bloody rags that needed washing and the medical equipment needed to be washed and sterilized as well in case any more stragglers stumbled in.

Nazz was cleaning a scalpel when someone placed a hand upon her shoulder. She turned around and saw Edd, Rolf, May, Lee, Marcus, and another young man she had never seen before. Nazz hugged Edd who tensed up at first but then returned the embrace.

"I'm glad that you guys are alright!" Nazz exclaimed then took another close look at the group. Suddenly her smiled turned into confusion. "Guys, where's Sarah?"

Edd could already see tears already welling in her eyes. "Well we have some bad news Nazz. Rolf saw Kevin among the Raiders and Sarah's missing." Edd said sadly.

Anger swept over Nazz's body. She turned slightly red in the face then angrily said, "I could kill that boy!"

* * *

_A/N: I finally got chapters 13 and 14 posted so please enjoy! I leave to go back to college in less than two weeks so I may try and start on chapter 15 but not sure how far I'll get. I have a lot on my plate this semester so I wouldn't expect another chapter anytime soon but I'll try and keep you guys posted. If you spot any spelling/grammatical errors please let me know so I can fix them asap. Also, if you have any questions or suggestions about the story just leave a review or send me a PM and I'll do my best to get back to you. Anyways I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!_

_-Evil Tim 17_


	15. Chapter 14: Countermeasures

**Chapter 14: Countermeasures**

**A/N:** _Not much to say other than enjoy the chapter!_

* * *

Kevin and what was left of the Raiders retreated to their vehicles. Kevin had Sarah's limp body thrown over his shoulder as he sprinted towards the nearest vehicle. He opened up the passenger side back door of the machine gun Humvee and tossed Sarah's body into the back. He slid over the hood of the Humvee and got into the driver's seat. Kraven got into the passenger's seat and Jason stumbled into the back after tripping over Sarah.

"Who the hell is this?" Jason yelled.

"A prisoner!" Kevin yelled back as he floored the Humvee and sped off back towards camp.

Kraven looked behind him and watched as the back of the other Humvee was torn to shreds by a Minigun_. _"Tick and Graze were back there." Kraven said aloud. "Oh well there are always new recruits." Kraven leaned back in his seat and shook his head.

_"He's right."_ Kevin thought. _"There'll always be more bodies to replace the fallen."_

Kevin wasn't too impressed by his first raid. They had lost all of Havok Squad, over half of his own squad and the squad leader from Graveyard Squad. _"Charlotte, Grub, Ricko, Tick, Graze… They're all dead…" _Kevin thought. _"But at least it wasn't completely worthless_…" Kevin looked back at Sarah's unconscious body flopping around in the backseat. "Well at least we're not coming home empty handed. I made sure of that." Kevin announced.

"Yeah you didn't too bad out there Kevin. Granted our squad always seems to do the worst but hey at least this time we beat Havok Squad huh guys!" Kraven laughed. "But don't worry Kevin I'll make sure to tell the Devil myself how well you did on your first raid. He'll probably shower you with another promotion or some goodies." Kraven finished.

Kevin hated Kraven at first. The snake-like man seemed to have come out of nowhere but once he got to know him better he warmed up to him. Kraven was crafty and knew how to motivate people in fact if it wasn't for Kraven it would be Razor Squad rotting in the sun rather than Havok Squad. Kevin checked his mirrors quickly to make sure all of the vehicles were still following him. They were. Kevin also noticed that Jason had finally calmed down and was breathing normally again. Kevin noticed that he himself was feeling a bit more relaxed. All Kevin knew was that now with Sarah in his grasp he'd be able to lure the rest of the gang into Death Valley where the he, the Devil, and the rest of their godless host would be waiting their arrival.

* * *

A week had passed by and now Eddy felt like a million bucks now that his wounds had almost completely healed. Though Paladin Stone didn't forgive Eddy for his sour tone and made him do the push-ups. Eddy was pissed at first but it felt good to be able to do some form physical exertion and not have to worry about being in immense pain. In fact everyone was faring better and took some time to explore the Bunker. It was rather boring and bleak as everything was made of metal and they mostly received cold glares from the other Brotherhood of Steel warriors, except for the other initiates they met. Eddy learned that along with him and his group they had two senior initiates and one senior squire in their squad as well. All of them originated from settlements in the Wasteland and joined the Brotherhood of Steel. The group also learned that Paladin Stone was newly promoted and so had a lot to prove to the others. That would probably explain why he was always so tough on them. All in all though Eddy and his group felt somewhat content with the Brotherhood of Steel but nothing is ever perfect.

Eddy, Marie, Jonny, Ed, and Locke all received a set of standard issued Leather Armor Mark I as well as their old weapons for now. They were all sitting around in the Motor Pool awaiting Paladin Stone who had called for a mandatory meeting. He was five minutes early, he always was.

Eddy, Ed, and Jonny were all leaning up against the wall while Marie and Locke simply stood around. Shadow was pacing around Locke. Stone hadn't called for the other members of their squad though, "fresh meat only" were his words. "Alright, listen up you pathetic maggots you're in luck! The Brotherhood has seen fit that you can skip part of your Basic Training Course!" Stone said.

"Why's that sir?" Locke asked.

"Because even though you got the shit beat out of you by that Deathclaw the Elders were so impressed that you were even able to kill the thing that they saw little reason as to why you should have to go through the weapons training course portion. This is a rare decision indeed but granted most of the initiates that join the Brotherhood of Steel know next to nothing about firearms and their proper use. So we'll be going straight to combat maneuvers and military tactics. Meet me above ground at 0630 tomorrow ladies! Dismissed!"

Everyone saluted Stone and then watched as he left the room.

"Well I guess that isn't too bad." Marie said.

"I guess so but I still hate that guy's guts." Eddy scowled.

"Why are we learning about manure?" Ed asked.

"I believe you mean maneuver." Locke said.

"Oh! Butter toast!" Ed cheered.

"I don't get it either Plank." Jonny said.

Eddy looked around at the people in the room. "That's it I'm out of here. If you need me I'll be at the gym." Eddy said as he left.

"Yeah buddy me too I need to pump some iron!" Jonny exclaimed.

"Oh boy! Eddy you will be so proud when you see how strong I am!" Ed yelled.

"Yeah I could use a little working out too." Marie added.

"Well, I could always use a little more muscle I suppose." Locke said.

"Damn it…" Eddy said to no one in particular.

* * *

"Come on Initiate Eddy hug that ground like it's your mamma!" Stone barked. "Initiate Jonny! What the hell do you think you're doing? Initiate Ed is giving you covering fire and all you're doing is sitting around scratching yourself! That's right you better run to that cover! Excellent shot Initiate Marie! You're the finest marksmen of the whole squad! Initiate Locke if you don't fire that weapon I'll come over there and beat you over the head with it myself!"

Stone was brutal on all of them though he knew that but he certainly had his favorites. He thought highly of Ed and Marie and knew they would both prove to be excellent soldiers. He didn't see any problems with them not getting promoted quickly. Initiate Eddy however would prove to be a handful. Lazy, loud-mouthed, stubborn, doesn't listen much but Stone knew he'd break him soon enough. Initiate Jonny was another weird one with the way he talks to that block of wood all the time, then again it's the crazy ones that always seen to do well...strange. He's a little timid at times but all he needs is a little shove off of the cliff, and then he'll really soar. Initiate Locke is a good shot but too quiet. Stone was always told to watch out for the quiet ones. He just seemed too innocent. His wolf though was pretty intimidating and as a duo they weren't half-bad but they still need some improvement! Stone loved perfection, strove for perfection. He wanted his squad to be in tip top shape; he wanted Falcon Squad to be at its best and he wouldn't hesitate run them into the ground to make them the best! Stone could truly care less about the lives of his men or whether they return home to their mammas in one piece but how well he could fine tune them into ruthless, precise, killing machines before they died. He had a mission coming up soon and he refused to command a rabble of Neanderthals. No, his soldiers would be ready for whatever they encountered and would accomplish their mission with the upmost precision. Stone simply wanted to prove to others that he has what it takes to be a Paladin in the Brotherhood of Steel!

Several more days of training passed leaving Eddy and his friends sore and tired from all the physical exertion. They all learned to some degree, some more than other of course but they all passed.

Ed despite his lack of intelligence did rather well. From all the years of listening to Eddy's commands when it came to their scams. So follwoing orders came easier to Ed! Ed when offered new weapons decided to stick with his combat shotgun and giant club. Honesty the Brotherhood didn't blame him considering he was decent with both. Since Ed completely lacked the mental capacity to really try and aim at his targets both weapons did a good job in making up for that.

Eddy could have listened a little better and while he got a basic grasp of it all he tended to try and do things his way which always ended in disaster. Several hundred push-ups later made Eddy realize that unless he wanted to be able to use his arms again he should at least pretend he's listening. When offered new equipment Eddy simply went to the armory and got a better quality sniper rifle (DKS-501), a combat knife, and kept his father's .32 pistol. Despite Stone's complaints of Eddy using a sniper rifle (due to his mediocre aim) Eddy was able to keep it.

Marie proved to be an adept marksmen as well as being deadly in close quarters. She generally followed orders with occasional slip-ups but otherwise had a good grasp of military tactics. Stone was pleased to see that at least one of the new initiates were good. He tried to convince her to swap positions with Eddy as sniper of the squad but she decided to stick with her new H&K MP5A4, serrated blade, and traded in her .32 pistol for a Beretta 92FS.

Jonny eventually got over his fear and started to excel a bit more. Reluctantly the Elders let him keep Plank so Jonny made a pouch that he could snuggly fit him in freeing up both his hands to use his new hunting rifle. Jonny proved to be a decent shot but also kept his H&K MP9 10mm SMG for those "just in case" moments. Overall Stone thoughts on Jonny are that he's just your average Waster, "never too spectacular but always strange."

Locke and Shadow proved that they were a great duo in combat exercises. Stone especially liked Shadow since he was good at detecting traps and enemies. Locke also proved his worth by being a good shot with his R91 Assault Rifle and 33mm Pistol. He also wasn't too shabby with his machete but definitely preferred guns. While Locke still had a strong distrust for the BOS he decided to he'd continue to make the best of it until they'll came up with a better idea of what to do.

* * *

It was crunch time now. Tomorrow was their mission and everyone involved was heading towards the briefing room to receive the General's orders. General Barnaky. The same man who had walked in when they first woke up in the medical bay. Between his constant yelling and racism towards everyone and everything not Brotherhood of Steel he tended to get on everybody's nerves but he was their best and brightest General which seemed to be enough to earn the respect of his inferiors.

"Alright quiet down everyone and listen up, I'm only going to say this once!" Barnaky barked. The room quieted down at the sound of the General's voice. Barnaky resumed, "The Raiders in this region must be defeated at all costs. They are a nuisance and if we are to expand they must be eliminated. Now our scouts have reported a large Raider stronghold that has been acting as a training ground and refitting station for the Raider cause. The base is about twenty miles South-West of our position so the time has come that we put an end to their base of operations. Ultimately our goal is to put an end to the Devil's Company once we can find out where their main base of operations is located. Until then however this stronghold must be eliminated. Now the Elders have stressed the importance of taking a few captives to try and get some information out of them. Of course you all know from past experience that it's impossible to squeeze information out of these Raiders so just go in there and blow their brains out! Now…" General Barnaky pulled out a detailed map of the Raider stronghold. "I want Paladin Solo to take Talon Squad and attack the Northern Wall."

Paladin Solo happened to be the person who talked to Eddy when he was dying out in the Wastes. Eddy thought she was a man at first due to the fact that her Power Armor made her sound like a man. Eddy made the mistake of calling her a man. Solo has never liked Eddy since they met or Talon Squad for that matter.

"Paladin Commander Drake you will take Demon, Falcon, and Tusk Squads and will attack the front."

_"Great!" _Eddy thought._ "We're going to get the worst of it!"_

"Now Urban Squad is already in the area since they've been doing reconnaissance on the stronghold for some time now and so will be joining in on the attack as well. Their attack will be concentrated on the Eastern Wall. So it will be up to Talon and Urban Squads to attack the Raiders from rear while they're distracted by Paladin Commander Drake. I will be giving a fully detailed map of the battlefield to each of the squad leaders so you can go over your plan of attack in more detail with your men. Failure is not an option! Everyone will meet at the Motor Pool at 0530 tomorrow morning! Dismissed!"

Everyone saluted the General as he left the room then dispersed into their separate squadrons. Paladin Commander Drake called together his three squads and gave each of them their sector that they would be responsible of during the assault. He laid his copy of the map on a nearby crate and started going over where each squad would be stationed. They would be attacking the Southern end of the stronghold. They would have to go through a forward trench line riddled with barbed wire, mines, two pillboxes, and three watchtowers. Then they would reach the front gate with twenty foot rusted steel walls. It was going to be a tough fight. The estimated garrison was over one-hundred combat-ready Raiders. The BOS was only sending in sixty-five warriors. Forty of those would be attacking the front gates. They had superior firepower, tactics, and intelligence but the Raiders had the defensive advantage.

Falcon Squad was given the center sector which was bound to be the toughest of the three. Stone had volunteered for it. Once Drake had handed out sectors he dismissed them to allow them to go over their plans of attack.

Stone took his squad over to the Motor Pool (that seemed to be his favorite place for meetings) to discuss their battle plan. Stone looked over the map; more specifically his sector. He and his squad would have to fight their way through the center of the trench line while avoiding mines, barbed wire, and bullets. Then they would have to capture one of the watchtowers. If they made good time they might even be the first squad to make it to the front gates! The trench system however was a bit more complex though. It stretched back to where it was about ten yards from the front gate. All in all the trench system was roughly one-hundred and fifty yards in length and about a hundred or so yards wide. It was a formidable defensive system but it would fall soon enough Stone thought as he looked over the map. He had a lot of ground to clear with just five initiates, two senior initiates, a junior squire, himself, and a dog… _"Oh and that other initiate we picked up the other day but he probably won't last that long anyways." _Stone thought.

Stone looked up at his squad then said, "Okay here's the plan. Initiates Jonny and Marie, as well as Senior Initiates Jackie and Tyler, and Junior Squire Susan will follow me. We'll punch a hole in the front while Initiates Ed, Eddy, Evan, and Locke (with Shadow) will navigate through the trenches towards the central watchtower, eliminate the opposition and then set-up shop until the rest of the squad arrives. Once everyone is back together we'll make a push for the front gate. Eddy however will stay behind and give sniper support and help cover our advance. Hopefully our support squads Demon and Tusk will be able to keep up. Once we receive radio contact that Talon and Urban Squads have both broken through we'll attack the main gates and effectively surround the enemy. Are there any questions?"

Everyone was silent.

"Good. Now go get some rest. Dismissed!"

The squad saluted then walked off towards the barracks where they nestled into their bunks and awaited tomorrow's battle.

All of the lower ranking warriors were nervous including Eddy and his group. Despite the fact that they had been in some combat situation they weren't sure how being part of a full-fledged battle would be like. All Eddy could picture were old war films of men charging across open fields and getting mowed down by machine gun fire or blown to bits by artillery. Luckily he was going to be in a watchtower for a good portion of the fight unlike the rest who'd be in the thick of it. He did have regrets though of not being able to be there fighting alongside his best friend Ed's side. Well they would until they got to the tower but by then the Raiders would most likely be retreating. _"Maybe I should have traded spots with Marie?"_ Eddy thought. But it was too late now. The plans were already set and in a few hours would be put into motion. _"Next time… if there is a next time."_ With that morbid thought still on his mind Eddy turned over onto his side, closed his eyes and tried to get some sleep. Old black and white war films continued to plague his conscious as he dozed off.

* * *

The barking of Paladin Stone's voice awoke Ed from his dream. He had just killed the Zombie Lord and was about to receive his grand prize of butter toast covered in gravy. Ed could almost taste it when Paladin Stone's angry voice filled Ed's ears. "Get up Initiate Ed!" Ed fell out of bed and quickly ran to retrieve his armor and weapons. Most everyone else had already gathered up their gear or was almost done by the time Ed reached the gear rack. He quickly put on his armor and collected his Combat Shotgun and plenty of extra ammo. Ed slung his Combat Shotgun onto his shoulder sprinted towards the Motor Pool. He quickly spotted his friends and ran over to meet them.

"Hiya guys! I can't believe I was almost late!" Ed chuckled.

"Idiot…" Eddy said. He was tired and still groggy from getting up and had little patience for Ed's nonsense.

Most of their squad look tired aside from Locke who was used to getting little sleep. Several APCs filled the Motor Pool as well as two Humvees. Stone and his squad were ordered into the back of an APC. They sat in silence for a moment until the engine of the APC sputtered to life followed by the other vehicles. The APC jerked forward then eased into a normal pace as they exited the Motor Pool. Eddy looked out one of the slits and noticed that they were outside now tearing across the open plains towards their objective. Eddy sat back and rested his eyes for the remainder of the trip.

The sudden halt of the APC and the sounds of battle made Eddy jerk awake. Paladin Stone was shouting and ordered everyone to get up. Before Eddy had hardly even gathered his weapons and battle gear the APC's hatch opened and Stone was forcing everyone out. They were at least fifty or more yards from the main trench line. Eddy could see the other squads going through the same procedure and advancing towards the enemy positions. Paladin Stone took the lead and ordered his squad to follow him minus Eddy, Ed, Locke, Shadow, and Evan who headed off towards their objective. They could see the tower in the distance and saw a machine gunner opening up upon the oncoming BOS warriors. Eddy wondered how many would perish by the end of the day.

Eddy and his small group made a mad dash for a large rock about twenty yards from the APC. They took cover behind it. Evan was shaking but fired his assault rifle in the enemy's general direction. Locke also opened fire upon the Raiders firing from the trench line and was able to hit one of them in the head killing him instantly. Eddy looked through his scope, spotted a Raider who had exposed himself. Eddy took aim, fired, and missed alerting the Raider to their position. Suddenly bullets riddled the front of the rock causing pieces of it to break off. They all huddled close together taking cover from the barrage of bullets and hoped that the other squads would be able to secure the front trench line soon.

Stone led his men straight up the middle without stopping. They all fired their weapons to keep the enemy suppressed but Senior Initiate Jackie took several bullets to the chest stopping her dead in her tracks. Stone simply left her behind and kept his squad moving forward, the longer they were out in the open the more casualties they'd take. Despite several close calls Stone's squad made it to the forward trench line and from their elevated positions sprayed the inside of the trench killing several Raiders and forcing others to retreat deeper into the trench complex. Stone's squad dropped down and set up a defensive line in case the Raiders counterattacked. Stone whistled and signaled for Eddy and his squad

Eddy spotted that the other squad had cleared the forward trench line and saw Stone signaling them. "Come on guys we gotta move!" Eddy yelled.

They all broke cover and sprinted towards their objective. Eddy noticed their fallen comrade, Jackie, to his left but kept moving not wanting to wait around and end up like her. They sprinted as fast as they could across and hopped into the trench and joined the other half of their squad. They had two paths to take, left or right.

"Good you guys made it! Though you could have given us more cover fire back there! Anyways, there's been a slight change of plans. I want Junior Squire Susan to lead Initiates Eddy, Ed, and Evan. Go right and weave your way through the trenches and kill any Raiders that get in your path. Capture that watchtower and put an end to that machine gunner up there before he kills anyone else! My squad and I will hold here in case of a counterattack and then continue onwards!" Stone ordered.

"Yes Sir!" Susan exclaimed. "Come on Initiates follow me!"

Susan was a dark-haired woman from one of the local tribes. She joined the BOS on the account that she's strong and proved to be a skilled warrior in both small guns and hand-to-hand combat.

Susan took her squad down the nearest path towards the watchtower. The sounds of combat filled the air as they made their way through the trench system. As they approached an intersection a Raider popped out from behind a corner with his double-barreled shotgun and fired. Susan took the full blast of the shotgun burst causing her to fly backwards and land on top of Eddy. Ed took aim with his own shotgun and pumped the Raider in the chest killing him instantly as blood sprayed from his chest.

"Ahh shit! Susan's down!" Eddy yelled as he pushed her off of him.

Evan ran up to the front with his medic bag in hand. "Gi- give me some room!" Evan stammered. He went to work trying to save her but it was already too late. Evan continued to try and help her. He checked her pulse and unsure of what to do next tried CPR which only resulted in getting her blood all over him.

"Evan! She's dead! Now come on we have to keep moving!" Eddy shouted as he dragged Evan to his feet. Evan put away his medic bag and followed Eddy.

Eddy led the rest of the group into the middle of the intersection. From their position they could see the central watchtower. Eddy looked to his left and saw the other half of his squad moving up only to be stopped when a barrage of machine gun fire forced them to take cover. Eddy knew that they had to keep moving and knock out that watchtower and maybe from the central watchtower they could knock out the other two. Ed took point, then Evan, and Eddy would cover the rear.

They continued working their way through the network of trenches. Another Raider popped out from behind a corner but Ed quickly dispatched him with a blast from his shotgun. Eddy noticed that the Raider had a nice SMG as he stepped over him. He quickly relieved the Raider of his weapon, shouldered his sniper rifle, and rejoined the squad with his newfound weapon in hand. A group of three Raiders came running down the same path as Eddy and his squad. They spotted the trio and came charging at them with a variety of melee weapons. Eddy ran to the front of the group and opened fire with his new SMG. Eddy let out a burst of automatic fire and slaughtered the group of Raiders in front of them. They all collapsed upon one another creating a heap of bloody bodies.

"Cool weapon Eddy where'd ya get it?" Ed asked as he admired Eddy's weapon.

"I snagged if off of a dead Raider back there but come on we don't have much time!" Eddy yelled as well as making himself the unofficial leader of the squad.

Ed and Evan simply followed suit and ran after Eddy as they started closing in on their objective as the war continued to rage around them.

Eddy could see their objective was only a couple hundred feet away so he hid himself against one of the dirt walls of the trench and waited for Ed and Evan to catch up. They did the same as Eddy and awaited his orders.

"Okay I don't think that the machine gunner dude saw us so the plan is that I'll climb up top and take care of the guy then I'll try to knock out the other two watch towers. You guys give me some cover on the ground in case any Raiders decide to try and climb up to get me."

"But Eddy how will you take out the other towers!" Ed exclaimed.

"Ed! Shut up!" Eddy whispered harshly as he covered Ed's mouth. "And I haven't quite figured that out all the way yet but I may try to use the machine gun or my sniper rifle okay!"

"Mhmm." Ed mumbled.

"Good! Now come on you two!" Eddy ordered as they closed in on the watch tower which luckily for them was under heavy small arms fire from elsewhere. Eddy hoped that he still had plenty of ammo in his new SMG but just in case kept his .32 pistol close by as they closed the gap between them and their target. His heart was trying to break out of his chest and sweat was pouring down his face. Eddy was scared and by looks of Ed and Evan's faces they were too. They waited there for several long seconds before Eddy finally broke cover and clambered towards the watchtower. Eddy didn't take into account how hard it was for him to climb out of the trench but luckily he and the others made it out before they were spotted. Several Raiders were hiding behind a sandbag emplacement when they saw the trio standing not too far away from their position.

"Get em!" one of the Raiders yelled as he fired at them with his 10mm Pistol.

Eddy and his group had little cover so they took cover behind the large posts of the watchtower and returned fire. Two Raiders were armed with pistols while another was armed with an RPG!

They fired back at the Raiders, injuring one and killing another. However, the one with the RPG was still alive and knowing the consequences of his decision fired at beams of the watchtower! The explosion sent Ed and Eddy flying backwards back into the trenches and blew Evan into another beam, knocking him unconscious. The tower slowly leaned then collapsed into a pile of burning and splintered wood.

Eddy's ears were ringing when he looked over and saw Ed holding a piece of wooden shrapnel that had punctured his armor and lodged itself into his side. It looked bad and there was blood already seeping from the wound. Eddy began to freak out a bit as he saw his friend laying there, eyes closed.

"No! Ed!" Eddy yelled as he checked Ed's pulse and breathing. "Thank God you're still alive!" Eddy cheered but he knew that if Ed didn't receive medical attention soon things would get a lot worse for his friend! Eddy remembered that Evan was a medic and quickly climbed up and out of the trench to look for him. Eddy spotted the RPG wielding Raider and emptied the rest of his SMG magazine into his body. Eddy searched the wreckage and to his dismay found Evan, dead. Several large wooden pieces were on top of him and his bloody hand was sticking out from the wreck. Eddy quickly pulled some of the wood off of his fallen comrade and found his medical bag. Some of the supplies inside were badly damaged but Eddy was able to salvage a Super and Ultra Stimpack.

Eddy quickly jumped back down to where Ed was still laying and prepped the Super Stimpack. They had showed Eddy how to use these in his training but he had mixed thoughts as to whether or not he'd be able to administer it to his friend. Eddy strapped the medical device to his friend and jabbed the needle into Ed. Eddy watched as the healing liquid entered his friend's body and waited several seconds to watch the affects. However it seemed to have little effect.

"Why won't you work damn it?" Eddy yelled in frustration.

Eddy then remembered the shrapnel and figured maybe removing that would help it heal quicker. Eddy slowly removed it and upon removal the loss of blood seemed to pick up significantly. Eddy freaked out and quickly prepped the Ultra Stimpack which he had been warned to only use it the direst of situations and not to mix it with other healing properties as it could have some nasty side effects. Eddy threw out all of his training and administered the powerful drug to his dying friend. The effects were almost immediate which relieved Eddy immensely. He sat back sighed and briefly closed his eyes only to jerk them open again when a rough hand shook him to attention.

* * *

Paladin Stone and his group watched as Junior Squire Susan led her group deeper into the labyrinth of trenches. Once they were out of sight Paladin Stone whistled to get his group's attention and barked, "Follow me warriors! It appears that the enemy is beginning to falter so let's go show them how real Brotherhood of Steel warriors fight! Stone let out a war cry before charging straight through the middle. The others let out their own war cries as they followed their fearless leader into battle. They came upon a few BOS warriors from Demon Squad who were sneaking through the trenches. Stone signaled for them but suddenly heavy machine gun fire started raining down upon them and cut them all down in their tracks, only leaving behind their bloody remains.

"Shit!" Stone cursed as he watched the men get massacred. "Damn it why isn't that tower down yet? Alright, here's the plan; Locke I need you to try and get a fix on that machine gunner and keep him suppressed while the rest of the squad gets to cover. Then we'll give you cover so you can make it to us. We'll repeat this process until we can capture or disable the watch tower." Stone finished.

Everyone nodded and got into running positions except for Locke who was adjusting the sights of his weapon.

"Covering fire!" Stone yelled followed by the sound of Locke's weapon.

The machine gunner took cover while the squad made its move to safety. Once they were in position Stone and Marie sprayed the watch tower with small arms fire as Locke sprinted for cover. He nearly tripped over a rock but caught himself as he dove against a wall of dirt. Locke was sweating and breathing heavily and again readjusted his sights before readying himself for covering fire.

They repeated the process with great success until they were less than a hundred yards from the watchtower. Stone pulled out some binoculars and saw that there was some sort of struggle going on around the base of the tower and figured that Senior Squire Susan and her squad had finally made it to their objective.

"Come on squad let's give Senior Squire Susan some support!" Stone yelled. Just as he turned to face the watchtower he saw it ignite into flames and tumble towards the earth.

"Holy shit…" was all Stone could get out as he watched the watchtower collapse to the ground. He shook it off however and ordered, "Come on we need to go and see if any of our warriors are wounded and get them out of there!"

They charged through the trenches and slew any Raiders foolish enough to try and stop them. They finally arrived to the scene of the wreckage and found Initiate Eddy and Ed still alive. Stone saw Eddy jab a Stimpack into Ed and then lean against the dirt wall of the trench and close his eyes. Stone ran up to Eddy and shook his saying, "Initiate Eddy! Get up! What's the current situation? Are you and Initiate Ed the only survivors?"

Eddy was pulled out of his daze by Stone's commanding voice and quickly answered, "Uhh yeah, yes sir! Ed and I are the only ones left and the central watchtower is destroyed! But Ed got hurt pretty bad so I gave him a few Stimpacks… sir!" Eddy finished.

"A few Stimpacks! How many is a few and how powerful of Stimpacks were they?" Stone asked angrily.

"Uhh an Ultra and Super sir…" Eddy said softly.

"What the hell were you thinking Initiate Eddy? Do you want him to die? Did you listen at all to any instructions given to you during basic? That sort of dosage can kill a man!"

Locke and Shadow ran over to Ed while Stone was chewing out Eddy and checked Ed's vital signs while Shadow licked Ed's face. Locke felt for a pulse and found one but it was very slow.

"He's still alive but he's going to need further medical treatment if we want him to live!" Locke said.

Stone looked over at Locke and barked, "Well then you and Initiate Jonny get him out of here! And take Shadow with you! Initiates Eddy, Marie and I will continue onward!" Jonny and Locke moved quickly and hefted Ed up and carried back towards the APCs.

Stone turned his attention back to his remaining squad members and said, "Alright it's up to us now to lead the charge. So we're going to pull ourselves together and push to the front gate where we'll take the enemy head on. Hopefully the left and right flanks will be able to meet us there shortly. Our other squads should have broken in by now and engaged the enemy from the rear so there should be little resistance between here and the gates. Once we arrive at the gates we're going to need to find some cover and hold out until the gates are opened then we can finish this fight!" Stone finished.

All Eddy could think about was his best friend Ed. Luckily Ed was a pretty big guy so hopefully the drugs weren't too much for him to handle. Ed always pulled through whenever something bad happened to him before so what makes this time any different from the rest? But if something did happen to him Eddy knew that he would be to blame and then he'd have to answer to everyone else for what happened… Eddy quickly dismissed those dark thought from his mind and refocused on the mission at hand. Eddy checked his ammo supply in his SMG and readied his .32 pistol and sniper rifle. He was ready for anything.

"Initiate Eddy! I need you to set up your sniper rifle so you can pick off any remaining guards on the walls! Here take this radio! I'll contact you when we start moving in." Stone barked as he handed Eddy the radio.

"Yes sir!" Eddy responded as he received the radio and gathered up his gear and started his search for some higher ground. Eddy returned to the rubble of the destroyed tower and figured that would provide him some sufficient cover for the time being. He found a good spot and set up the bipod on his sniper rifle. He toyed a bit with the magnification and calculated the windage as best he could. Eddy wasn't the best sniper but he would do his best regardless. Satisfied, Eddy began looking for targets. He found that there weren't many guards left on the wall, most likely due to the fact they were being flanked but he spotted a manned machine gun turret and figured that getting rid of that should be priority number one. Eddy focused and attempted to slow his breathing. He was still pretty shook up over what had happened to Ed but did his best calm himself down enough to take the shot. Eddy fired but missed. The round hit the shield guarding the gunner which alerted him. Eddy watched as the gunner frantically searched for the origin of the shot. Eddy reloaded and tried again this time with some success. The round hit the gunner's exposed shoulder and had enough force to knock him off of the wall.

The radio beside Eddy crackled a bit before Stone's voice began emitting from it. "Nice shot Initiate! We're moving in now so keep us covered! Over."

"Will do sir! Over."

Eddy silently celebrated his successful shot and began scanning again for more targets. Little did Eddy know a surviving Raider was sneaking up on him from behind with a bloody knife in hand.

He was closing in on his prey who was completely unaware of his presence. The base was lost, that much was certain. Now all he and his fellow brethren could do is inflict as much damage on the Brotherhood of Steel as possible. They would make them pay dearly for this base and this lone sniper would be joining the list of those who had already fallen. He was so close now, just a few more yards now… _snap_. He had stepped on a piece of splintered wood. He quickly glanced down then back up. He had lost the element of surprise; the time to attack was now!

Eddy looked back and saw the Raider charging at him with knife in hand! Eddy barely had enough time to roll out of the way before the Raider stabbed at where Eddy was just lying seconds earlier. Eddy grabbed for his .32 but again had to evade the Raider's knife. Eddy just pulled out the .32 when the Raider sliced Eddy's arm causing him to drop the pistol! Eddy grabbed his bleeding forearm in agony as the warm blood seeped through his fingers. Eddy pushed himself away from the raider with his legs but he knew it was no good. The rest of the Brotherhood were already assaulting the base, there weren't any reinforcements coming, all of his friends were either dead, hurt, or fighting for their lives… Eddy knew he was going to die.

Eddy lifted his bloodied hand to try and protect his face from the deadly blade but he knew it would only prevent the inevitable. As Eddy prepared himself for the end a gunshot sounded, followed by a loud thump as a body hit the ground. Eddy slowly lowered his arm and watched as blood leaked out of a bullet hole in the Raider's forehead. Eddy looked from side to side trying to figure out what happened when he heard Jonny's voice.

"Eddy! Are you alright?" Jonny, Locke and Shadow all came running up to Eddy.

Eddy was stunned by the fact that he was even breathing and was too shocked to even respond. Eddy finally came to his senses when Jonny ran up and shook him out of his shocked state.

"Yeah, I think I'm fine. He just cut my arm is all…" Eddy said as he and the others looked at the long, bloody cut across his forearm.

"We better get that bandaged up before it gets infected." Locke said as he pulled out the last of his medical gauze and began wrapping Eddy's wound.

"No, guys I'll be fine! We have to finish the mission!" Eddy insisted as he tried to stand up but was too weak to do so due to the loss of blood.

"Eddy you've done your part, trust me the mission will be completed but your wounds are too serious for you to continue on. We need to get you out of here." Locke said.

Eddy looked back over the battlefield, taking in all of the carnage and destruction. He was feeling light headed and nauseous. He knew that his friends were in there fighting and doing their part and he was insistent that he would see this mission through to the end. Eddy slowly pushed himself up to his feet, grabbed his .32, and started shuffling towards the front gate. Unfortunately he only made it a few steps before he collapsed. Locke and Jonny quickly ran over and picked him up off the ground.

"I've got Eddy but I'm sure the guys could really use some backup." Locke said as he gathered Eddy's weapons and gear and picked up his unconscious friend.

"Sounds like a plan!" Jonny exclaimed as he reloaded his weapon and charged towards the front gate.

* * *

"Shit! We have to take out that machine gun nest or he's going to be the death of all of us!" Stone shouted as another hail of bullets riddled their deteriorating cover. Marie, Stone, and the remaining members of Demon and Tusk Squadrons had fought hard and valiantly and pushed the Raiders back until they came across a hidden machine gun nest. They lost the Squad leader of Tusk and two other men were in critical condition. Talon and Urban had run into more trouble than they had expected. A group of Raiders who were returning from a mission attacked them from behind when they saw their base under siege. Now Urban and Talon found themselves boxed in by Raiders with their escape route cut off. Things were not going as planned.

Jonny could see his pinned down squad members and saw the machine gun nest. He flanked right using the buildings to conceal himself until he was in position. Jonny had snagged a few grenades off of some dead Raiders which he planned to use to take out the machine gun nest. Jonny found a damaged building that was within throwing distance of the machine gun nest and readied himself. He had two HE grenades at his disposal. The bunker looked sturdy but if anything this would give his friends the cover they needed to move in and destroy the nest. Jonny pulled the pin from the first grenade and chucked it as far as he could. It landed in front of the firing port and exploded. The machine gun stopped but Jonny threw his second grenade which landed on the top of the bunker and exploded sending dirt and other debris flying. Jonny then released a salvo from his SMG to try and keep the gunner pinned just a little longer.

Stone watched as the grenades exploded and the bullets riddled the concrete firing port of the bunker. Seeing this as their only chance he shouted, "Take that damn bunker! Charge!"

The relieved BOS warriors broke cover and made their way towards the flanks of the bunker. They chucked grenades inside and fired their weapons into the firing port. Satisfied that the enemy had been destroyed they reloaded their weapons and redistributed ammo and supplies. Jonny revealed himself from his cover and met up with his friends.

"Initiate Jonny was that you who threw those grenades?" Paladin Stone questioned.

"Yes sir!" Jonny replied.

"Well good job, you really saved our butts back there. Now reload your weapon and get ready to keep pushing. Talon and Urban are just on the other side of these buildings and could really use our help." Stone finished.

Jonny was reloading his SMG when Marie walked up and said, "Hey thanks for the save back there Jonny. We'd be dead if it wasn't for you."

"It was no problem! It was Plank's idea in the first place!" Jonny said as he patted Plank who was attached to Jonny's belt.

"I can't believe you carry that thing with you into combat." Marie smiled and walked back over to the rest of the group. Jonny followed suite.

Stone gave his remaining soldiers their orders and had them set up along the string of buildings that separate them from their comrades. Marie and Jonny were on the right side with another Initiate from Demon Squad. Stone positioned himself in the middle and gave the order to move. The line of troops moved forward silently and with their weapons at the ready. They could see Talon and Urban Squads pinned down in a series of buildings. The Raiders were completely unaware of the incoming BOS.

"Charge!" Stone yelled as he opened fire upon the exposed Raiders. The Raiders had little time to react and were now trapped. Stone and his men easily gunned them down while Talon and Urban broke cover and killed any remaining Raiders in their vicinity. Once the gunfire stopped the remaining members of Talon and Urban made their way towards their fellow BOS companions.

"Thanks for the save back there Stone." Paladin Solo said as she reloaded her assault rifle. "If it weren't for you guys we'd be dead. I'll see to it that you are honored for this." Paladin Solo finished as she returned to her weary men.

"Just following orders." Paladin Stone replied. Stone grabbed his radio and called back to Paladin Commander Drake.

"Sir, mission accomplished. The Raider garrison has been eliminated. Awaiting further orders over."

"Good job Paladin Stone. Gather your men and return to the APCs. Lance and Repo Squads are being sent to clean up the mess and secure the base. Over." Paladin Commander Drake finished.

"Yes, Sir. Over." Stone said as he looked over his battered men. They had lost a lot of good warriors today and they would be missed dearly. Stone refocused on his new objectives and rallied the remaining BOS warriors and ordered them back towards the APCs.

Marie looked over the field of battle and sighed. She had watched many men fall today and had killed many a man herself. _"What have I become?"_ she questioned. She enjoyed the thrill of battle but she always felt sick once it was over. She knew that by killing these Raiders who pillage, rape, and burn would make the Wasteland a safer place but it disturbed her mind and spirit at the same time.

"Maybe I'm just tired and need some rest…" Marie said quietly to herself.

Jonny saw Marie and quickly caught up to her.

"Hey Marie! How'd you…" Jonny stopped himself as he saw the disgruntled look on Marie's face. "Hey Marie, is something wrong?" Jonny asked.

"No, I'm just tired is all." Marie responded.

"Oh, well come on let's get back to the APCs then. Maybe they'll have some hot chow waiting for us when we get there!" Jonny exclaimed.

"Yeah, hopefully." Marie responded.

Marie and Jonny walked in silence but were shocked once they got back to the APCs and saw the number of wounded and dead. Repo and Lance Squads had already arrived and had started taking care of the dead and wounded. Jonny and Marie spotted Locke and Shadow who were seated next to Ed and Eddy who were lying on stretchers. They ran over and met their friends.

"Hey Ed! Hey Eddy! How are you guys doing?" Jonny asked.

"I'm good." Eddy replied.

"I'm gravy!" Ed exclaimed.

"That's good to hear." Marie said.

"Yeah the doc said we should be good after two weeks of recovery but I'm sure we'll be good to go in a week." Eddy said.

"So I guess we're all that's left then." Marie said as she took note of their missing squad members.

"Yeah, again we cheat death." Locke said as he patted Shadow on the head.

The group sat in silence until Paladin Stone came over and said, "Good job Initiates! You all performed well out there today and far exceeded my expectations. I'll see to it that all of you are promoted and rewarded for your efforts today. Now get ready to move out."

"Yes, sir." they all said at once.

Locke, Jonny, and Marie helped move Ed and Eddy into the back of an APC before following suite. They all took their seats (except for Ed and Eddy who were lying on the ground) and grounded their gear. Marie laid her head back against the cold metal interior and sighed.

Locke continued to pet Shadow and kept an eye on Ed and Eddy to make sure they were doing okay.

Jonny was having a conversation with Plank about the battle and the news that they were getting promoted.

The APC engine roared to life, leaving behind the field of battle.

* * *

Edd, Nazz, Rolf, Marcus, Rolen, May, and Lee all sat in Edd's Headquarters trying to come up with a plan as to how they were going to get Sarah back. They had been at it for hours and had gotten very little done; most likely due to the shock of the attack. They couldn't commit too many forces in the off chance that the Raiders attacked again and also weren't sure as to how many Raiders they would have to face at their camp. There was also the trouble of actually finding their camp and finding it quickly. They lacked vehicles and thus it would take them longer to get to their camp but it did give them an element of surprise.

Edd laid his head down on the rough wooden desk. He was tired and worried about Sarah, his friends, the colony, everything! The stress of his job was now really starting to get to him. It would be different if it was someone he didn't really know but this was Ed's sister here. How could he ever face Ed again if Sarah was killed? That and it would break Ed's heart. He had to find a way to get her back! Edd slowly raised his head and looked at everyone with dreary, tired eyes. They all looked to him for guidance as to what they should do and they could all see that he was at the end of his rope. Edd had hardly slept in days and all of this anxiety had brought on even more nightmares. He wasn't even really sure what was keeping him going.

Rolf spoke up, "Double-D Ed boy let Rolf and a small band of men track down these Raiders, find their camp, and bring back the loud-mouthed sister of the nincompoop Ed boy."

"Rolf I couldn't very well live knowing that I gave you permission to go on such a suicide mission." Edd replied. "I can't afford to lose you."

"Kid listen…" Marcus said. "Sometimes in life you have to take chances and sometimes you have to go in knowing that it probably won't turn all well but you do it because it's your only option. Rolf here has a point. A small group of well-trained warriors could very easily sneak in, grab Sarah, and get out. Of course we're going to be on their turf this time around and have no idea what we could be going up against. I'll go then, and I'll take some men. I mean you won't miss me as much as you'd miss Rolf right? I'm expendable." Marcus finished.

Edd was so tired he could barely keep his eyes open. "I don't know guys-" Edd had collapsed against the table from exhaustion.

Some of the other started to get up to help him but Marcus cut them off by saying, "I knew if I talked long enough it would put him to sleep. Now listen everybody we need to get a team together and get out before he wakes up. Besides he's not exactly in his right mind currently due to the lack of sleep. Now Rolf and I here are going for sure but I think the rest of you should stay back for when he does wake up. You know keep him calm and don't let him do anything stupid alright. We'll be back in a few days I'd guess. If we're not back in a week then assume the worst." Marcus finished.

"I want to go too." Rolen stood up.

Marcus and Rolf looked at each other and nodded.

"Fine kid but I'm not sure that that Minigun is going to help you keep a low profile but those grenades could be helpful… can you use another weapon besides the Minigun?" Marcus asked.

"Sure! I can use basically any gun that's out there!" Rolen said excitedly.

"Good! Well go to the armory and get something small and light, but deadly and meet Rolf, the others, and I by the Northern Guard Post. We're going to find these sons of bitches and make them think twice before attacking us again!" Marcus exclaimed.

Everyone else cheered then broke off. Some took Edd back to his quarters to rest while the others prepared for the daunting mission before them.

* * *

Kevin paced back and forth in front of a cage like a ravenous animal. Inside was his prize. The Devil wasn't too pleased with the lack of prisoners but when Kevin explained that this prisoner would help them in defeating the colony once and for all he showered Kevin and the other surviving Raiders with gifts. Kevin could have cared less though about these trivial gifts and instead traded them in for his prisoner of war. He wasn't sure what to do with Sarah though. Of course he had to get some information out of her but after that he wasn't sure. He decided that maybe he could try and figure out what state Nazz was in currently. He would at least be able to know how she was fairing after all of the recent events.

Kevin continued to pace as he waited for her to come to. He knew she would be furious as soon as she wakes up and realizes fully what happened. But he was confident that he would be able to shut her up. He grinned evilly to himself as she started to come to.

Sarah could barely see at first as the blow to her head had hurt her vision but the fuzziness in her head began to clear and she could see that she was in some sort of cage. She got to her knees and looked around a bit but her eyes stopped on the person standing in from of her.

"Kevin!" Sarah said angrily. All of the grogginess left her immediately. "What the hell is going on here and why did you attack me?" Sarah asked angrily.

"It's nice to meet you too Sarah." Kevin said ignoring her questions and moving closer to the cage. He squatted just about a foot away from it and said, "You're lucky you know. Some of the guys here wanted to do unmentionable things to you but I wouldn't let them and now that I own you they wouldn't dare touch you."

"What did you just say?" Sarah exclaimed getting red in the face.

"You heard what I said. Now listen to me you brat you're going to give me a detailed description of the colony and you're going to give it to me without any fighting or yelling got it? Next you're also going to inform me on how Nazz is doing." Kevin finished.

"Why should I tell you anything and why do you even care about Nazz? You destroyed her and now that she was starting to make such a great recovery you swoop in again and mess everything up!" Sarah yelled getting close to the bars.

"Well I guess that at least answers my second question to some degree, thanks. Now about that first question…" Kevin said slyly.

Sarah quickly covered her mouth but then said, "It doesn't matter anyways because I know that my friends are on their way right now to save me and when they free me from this cage I'm going to kill you Kevin Jones." Sarah whispered harshly.

"That's exactly what I want. Because they'll come waltzing in here like they own the place because they won't realize that the Devil, me, and his entire ungodly host will be waiting here anticipating their arrival. And we'll all be very happy to see them. Besides we need more target dummies." Kevin said.

"You're sick!" Sarah spat.

"Everyone's sick! You're sick, I'm sick, your friends, my friends, everybody!" Kevin yelled. He was breathing heavily after yelling then said, "And it won't take you long to see what I mean..."


	16. Chapter 15: Reunion

**Chapter 15: Reunion**

**A/N: **_Hello everyone, I know it's been far too long since my last update so I hope you guys haven't completely abandoned my story. I've had a rather busy and eventful summer and this story got put on the back burner. Think of this as two chapters in one. I'm hoping that I'll have more time to work on this story while I'm at college but we'll see. Again, I apologize for the late posting but here it is, enjoy!_

* * *

Marcus was looking through his binoculars and could see smoke rising from the embers of last night's fires. The majority of the Raiders were still hung over or unconscious from last night's festivities. Marcus, Rolen, and Rolf had watched as the Raiders partied throughout the night and into the next morning. They still hadn't seen any sign of Sarah from their vantage point above the Raider's camp but they hadn't lost hope just yet. Satisfied with his observations Marcus slid down the rock he was lying on and rejoined Rolen and Rolf who were patiently awaiting his orders.

Marcus looked at the two young men before saying: "Alright fellas those Raiders are still pretty drunk so it shouldn't be too hard to sneak into their base. But don't think that this is going to be a walk in the park; we still have to find Sarah and get her out of this hellhole undetected. So make sure you're loaded up and ready to move out because there's no turning back until the mission is complete or we're dead."

Rolf and Rolen nodded and loaded their weapons. Rolf was armed with his scoped hunting rifle with a homemade silencer attached, a silenced H&K MP5A3, and a boot knife. Rolen temporarily traded in his Minigun for a silenced M4A1, a silenced H&K USP .45, and a combat knife.

Marcus loaded his duel silenced M1911's and signaled for Rolf and Rolen to follow him. They made their way down from their perch and towards the entrance to the Raider camp. The gate was guarded by two Raiders who were passed out and lying in a pile of beer bottles.

"Should we take care of those guys?" Rolen asked unsheathing his knife.

"No, let them be for now." Marcus replied as they snuck past the two intoxicated guards.

"So far so good." Rolf commented as they entered the Raider camp.

"Don't get too optimistic Rolf. Statistics would still say that we're pretty much screwed at the moment." Marcus said as he scanned the area for potential enemies.

The trio snuck through the forest of tents and shelters while avoiding stepping on unconscious Raiders. They quickly made their way out of the sleeping quarters and found themselves at the entrance of a large building composed of rusty sheet metal and cloth. There was a sign outside with "Armory" painted crudely upon the rusted signpost and there were no guards in sight.

"Guys I have an idea that may help us if we find ourselves in a bit of trouble." Marcus said as he made his way towards the armory. "You two wait here. I'll be back in a second!"

Marcus sprinted inside of the building while Rolf and Rolen hid behind a pile of trash until Marcus returned. Marcus returned after a few short minutes.

"Okay guys let's get moving."

"Rolf is wondering what you did Marcus?"

"Hey, don't worry about, now let's go." Marcus replied.

The trio continued their journey through the Raider encampment when they came upon a patrol of Raiders who seemed to have their wits about them. They ducked behind a pile of rocks and rubble as they waited for the patrol to pass.

"Boss says that we're running low on slave labor so we're stepping up on our raids." one Raider said in a gruff voice.

"That's fine by me, as long as there's plenty of booze to go around I'm set." another Raider replied.

"Kevin brought in a pretty little slave girl on their last raid though I heard she's a feisty one." another Raider said.

"We'll see how long she keeps that kind of attitude around here!" the first Raider replied, eliciting laughter from the other Raiders.

Marcus sighed in relief upon hearing that Sarah was still alive but they still needed to find the prison camp and fast. Marcus quickly scanned the surrounding area and saw that it was clear. He motioned for Rolf and Rolen to stay put while he moved out. Marcus was searching for anything that could give him a clue as to where the prisoners were being held and that's when he heard that all familiar voice.

"Get away from me you creep!"

"Sarah!" Marcus said to himself. He got Rolf and Rolen's attention and motioned for them to follow him. They quickly left their cover and made their way to Marcus. They ran towards where they heard Sarah's voice when they saw a ghoul trying to grab Sarah through the bars. He was obviously drunk as he was having a hard time keeping his balance. Rolen quickly ran over to the ghoul and punched him in the face causing him to fly backwards a few feet. Rolen then pulled out a knife and finished the ghoul off.

"Good job kid." Marcus said as he went to work picking the lock on Sarah's cage.

"Wait, what are you guys doing here?!" Sarah asked.

"We're here to save you loud-mouthed one." Rolf responded while keeping watch for Raiders.

Suddenly a roving Raider patrol came upon the trio attempting to free Sarah.

"Hey! Intruders!" one of the Raiders yelled as he opened fire with his assault rifle.

"Get down!" Rolen yelled as he returned fire.

"Keep them off of me! I'm almost done!" Marcus yelled.

Rolf quickly dropped to the ground and began acquiring targets with his hunting rifle. Rolf found the head of a Raider in his sights and fired. The shot hit the man square in the head and caused a shower of blood to explode from his head. Upon seeing one of their own being shot down in front of them the rest of the Raiders quickly hit the dirt and continued firing at the intruders. Rolen unleashed a hail of bullets upon two unlucky Raiders who attempted to charge the trio but quickly met their fates. The remaining Raiders began to fall back just as Marcus had gotten the cage unlocked.

"Alright, she's free! Now let's get out of here!" Marcus yelled.

"Here Sarah, take this." Rolen said as he handed her his pistols.

"Thanks Rolen." Sarah responded.

"Come on guys it won't be too much longer before the whole camp is awake and after us! Follow me!" Marcus ordered as he sprinted back towards the gate.

The others followed and kept their weapons at the ready. They made their way back towards where all of the Raiders were sleeping and stopped dead in their tracks when standing before them was about twenty Raiders armed to the teeth.

"Oh shit!" Marcus yelled as he opened fire upon the group as well as Rolf, Rolen, and Sarah.

Several Raiders dropped as the rest found cover and opened fire on the intruders. The trio plus Sarah took cover behind a pile of rocks and returned fire. They were running out of time as it wouldn't be too much longer before the whole camp was after them. Rolen quickly remembered that he had several grenades on him and pulled out three of them.

"Rolf, Marcus! Take a grenade and on the count of three we throw them." Rolen ordered.

"Choose where you throw them wisely." Marcus added.

"One…Two…Three!" they said in unison. They each got up and tossed their respective grenades before taking cover again. The Raiders began to yell in panic as three separate explosions could be heard.

"Make a run for the gate! Go!" Marcus yelled.

They all broke cover and made a run for the gate, gunning down any Raiders that were unfortunate enough to be in their path along the way. The grenades had caused some severe damage to the Raiders and the survivors began to retreat. As they started to come up on the armory they could see large groups of Raiders going in to arm themselves. Marcus pulled out a detonator from his pocket and said: "Everyone get down!"

Everyone hit the dirt as Marcus pushed the button. The armory exploded into flames as pieces of debris and shrapnel flew in all directions. All of the Raiders inside or around the building were killed instantly from the blast and the shrapnel produced from the explosion killed and injured even more. Once the explosion had settled some they quickly got up and continued making their way towards the front gate. They saw an old pick-up truck parked near the front gate as well as three Raiders who were arguing over something. Marcus opened fire and quickly gunned down all three of the Raiders.

"Alright, Rolen and Rolf you get in the bed of the truck, Sarah, you take shotgun. I'm driving." Marcus ordered. Everyone quickly got to their assigned spots as Marcus sped through the gate and into the mountain pass. Marcus adjusted his mirrors as best he could without getting too distracted and crashing into the side of the mountain. Rolf and Rolen kept their fingers on the trigger and eyes trained on the quickly fading mountain pass behind them. Many minutes passed and there was still no sign of pursuit from the Raiders.

"Rolf is surprised that we made it out so easily."

"Hey! Don't jinx us! We're not out of the woods yet! Marcus barked.

"Are you kidding me! We destroyed tho-" Rolen was interrupted as bullets began to hit the truck.

Two pick-up trucks filled with Raiders darted out from an intersecting path in the mountains and began chasing them.

Damn it! Now you've gone and jinxed us!" Marcus yelled as he floored it.

Rolf and Rolen exchanged gunfire with the two trucks that were hot on their tail. Rolen blind fired to avoid being shot by the hail of bullets heading their way. The truck was taking a lot of damage and the group was running out of ammunition. They would have to come up with a plan soon in order to survive this ordeal. It was in that moment that Rolen began searching his person for what was perhaps their only hope of survival. Rolen celebrated inwardly when he felt his hand rest upon his final grenade. It would be a long shot but if he could somehow manage to blow up the first truck which would cause the second truck to crash they may stand a chance of getting out of this mess in one piece.

Rolen pulled out the grenade and looked over at Rolf who was currently blind firing his weapon.

"Rolf, I need you to give me as much cover fire as possible!" Rolen yelled.

Rolf noticed the grenade in Rolen's hand and said, "Rolf will give you as much cover as possible!"

"Alright! On the count of three then!"

"One!" Rolen pulled the pin.

"Two!" Rolen released the metal spoon.

"Three!" Rolen exposed himself and tossed the grenade while Rolf provided him covering fire.

The grenade flew through the air and blew up as it hit the front windshield of the first truck causing the driver to swerve out of control. The second truck driver was unable to evade the first truck causing both of them to crash into the mountainside. However, during it all a stray bullet struck Rolen in the chest causing him to fly back into the truck bed. Rolen grasped at his injury in agony as blood quickly poured from the wound. Within seconds both his hand were covered in blood as he attempted to stop the bleeding.

"Good job kid!" Marcus yelled.

"You did it Rolen!" Rolf shouted.

Rolf looked over in horror as he saw his friend bleeding out.

"Marcus! You need to hurry! Rolen has been hit and is bleeding badly!" Rolf yelled as he tried to assist Rolen in stopping the bleeding.

"What? How bad is it?" Marcus yelled.

"Rolf thinks that it is pretty bad yes!" Rolf replied.

Rolen was beginning to feel dizzy as he continued to lose blood.

"Hold on kid I'll get you out of here!" Marcus yelled as he pressed down on the gas pedal even harder.

Sarah had hardly said a word since the whole ordeal began. She couldn't help but feel that it was partially her fault that Rolen had been injured. She felt helpless as she looked behind her and watched as Rolf fought to save Rolen's life. "If I hadn't gotten captured in the first place none of this would have happened." Sarah deadpanned.

Marcus looked over at Sarah and then back at Rolf and Rolen. Marcus knew that he had to get these kids out of here if it was the last thing he did.

"Rolf! Keep him alive for just a little longer! We're almost out of this mess!" Marcus yelled.

As Marcus refocused his attention back on what was in front of him he quickly slammed on the brakes as he saw two more heavily armed trucks in front of them filled with more Raiders! Marcus swerved the truck so that it would be diagonal with the Raiders in front them as to provide them with more cover.

"Sarah get out! Rolf! Rolen! Stay down!" Marcus yelled as he too jumped out and quickly hid behind the truck. Just as he finished the Raiders began to open fire on the truck. The truck was quickly falling apart as the Raiders riddled it with bullets. Marcus covered Sarah with his body and Rolf did the same with Rolen until the gunfire halted. Rolf quickly popped up and opened fire on the Raiders and was able to drop a few of them before Rolf felt pain in his right shoulder and fell back into the truck.

Marcus could hear as Rolf cried out in pain and so quickly popped up as well as unloaded a few rounds into the group of Raiders.

"Hang in there Rolf!" Marcus yelled as he fumbled for another magazine for his pistol. He realized he was on his last magazine and sighed deeply as he reloaded. Things were beginning to fall apart and deep down Marcus knew that their mission was a failure and that he was unable to save Sarah or his friends. Sure they had really given the Raiders a run for their money but in the end it was all for nothing.

"I'm sorry Sarah." Marcus said sadly. "I've failed you and your friends."

Sarah was silent for a second before saying, "You did your best Marcus. It's alright."

Marcus knew it was only a matter of time before the Raiders would advance to finish them off.

"Listen Sarah, I'm going to try and give you some time. I'll distract the Raiders while you just run back the way we came. Find somewhere where you can easily climb up into the mountains and hide out there for a bit until things cool down then make your escape back to camp." Marcus finished.

"But, I can't just leave you guys!" Sarah argued.

"Sarah! There's no time for this now when I stand up you run! Got it!" Marcus yelled.

Sarah simply nodded her head and prepared herself to run.

"Tell the others about what happened here." Marcus said.

"I will." Sarah replied.

Marcus then stood up and jumped out from hiding. He let out a war cry and began to unload his pistol into the group of advancing Raiders, catching them all by surprise.

Sarah stood up and started to run when she suddenly heard gunshots, then an explosion, followed by another one. The second explosion caused her to stumble and fall. She looked back and saw flames and smoke coming from where the Raiders vehicles were and Marcus taking cover from the explosions. In an instant a group of armed warriors in metal armor poured through the smoke and flames and began gunning down the exposed Raiders. After disposing of the Raiders the soldiers surrounded the pick-up truck and had their weapons trained on Marcus and the truck.

"Hey, take it easy guys I'm not a Raider! I'm not one of them!" Marcus implored.

"He's telling the truth!" Sarah yelled as she began walking back towards the truck.

"Halt!" one of the soldiers commanded as he raised his rifle at Sarah.

Sarah raised both of her hands, dropped her pistol but kept walking until she was only a few meters from the soldiers.

"I said halt!" the soldier said aggressively as he pointed his rifle at Sarah's face.

"Stand down soldier!" said an armored man.

The man was covered from head to toe in armor but only had a strange looking pistol as a weapon. He approached Sarah until he was only a few feet from her. "It's obvious she's not a Raider, she doesn't even look like one in the least bit but the question is why are you with him?" he questioned as he pointed at Marcus.

"Does that honestly matter right now? Two of my friends are currently dying in the bed of that truck and need medical attention!" Sarah yelled.

He looked over his shoulder at the truck then returned his attention to Sarah. "Load the wounded into the APC and see to it that they receive medical attention. As for you and your friend over there you'll be coming with us for further questioning."

"Hey! Hey! Hey! She has no part in any of this I was just sent to get her back from the Raiders! Besides I'm the one you really want!" Marcus argued.

Sarah was genuinely confused by this point. Who were these guys and how did they know Marcus?

"Listen; just take me and take these three back to their home. I can show you on a map exactly where to take them and I promise you they won't follow you. Just drop them off and leave is all I'm asking." Marcus pleaded.

The leader of the armored warriors contemplated Marcus's words before agreeing. "Very well, your friends will be returned to their home and you will be coming with me. Men! See to it that these three make it back home alive. The medical team will return them while the rest of you continue on with the assault! Remember warriors we still have a mission to complete!"

"Wait! No, Marcus you can't just go with these guys! What if they kill you?" Sarah begged.

"Don't worry Sarah, the last thing these guys want to do to me is kill me." Marcus explained before being carried off.

The armored warriors acknowledged their leader's orders and returned to their vehicles and continued down the mountain pass towards the Raider's base while another APC transported Rolf, Rolen, and Sarah back to their home. Marcus was escorted to a Humvee where he was blindfolded and driven off deep into the Wasteland.

* * *

Kevin frantically assigned the remaining Raiders tasks as they prepared for the imminent assault by the Brotherhood of Steel. While Kevin was barking orders to a group of Raiders Kraven approached Kevin from behind.

"Kevin! We have to get out of here! It's only a matter of time before they break through! The Devil has assembled a convoy to escape through a secret path in the mountains. We need to hurry!"

"Very well, let's go then." Kevin replied.

Kevin hated backing down from a fight even if he knew he was going to lose but perhaps this was the better option. Kevin slung his weapon over his shoulder and quickly followed Kraven back to the motor pool. There were only a few trucks and a Humvee left. Kevin could see several Raiders loading up the trucks with crates of supplies. The Devil was berating two Raiders who dropped a crate when Kevin arrived.

"Sir, I believe it's time to go now. The Brotherhood will be breaking through any minute now." Kevin told The Devil.

"Then let's move out." The Devil replied. "Kevin I want you to drive the Humvee and Kraven you can join us as well. Kevin made his way to the driver's side of the beat up Humvee and took his seat, followed by The Devil who sat down on the passenger's side and Kraven positioned himself behind the driver's seat. The other seats were quickly filled by other Raiders. One Raider however found himself without a seat and began begging Kevin to let him in.

"Please! You can't just leave me here to die!" the Raider begged.

"There isn't enough room! Now step aside!" Kevin yelled.

The Devil motioned for Kevin to lean back before pulling out a Desert Eagle and shooting the man square in the head causing blood to spray onto the side of the Humvee.

"Drive." The Devil ordered as he holstered his weapon.

Kevin started up the vehicle and began driving through a hidden pass. It was barely wide enough for the vehicles to fit through. Kevin kept his eyes on what was in front of him but listened to the gunfire and explosions in the background.

"It's a shame. I really enjoyed this place." The Devil said to no one in particular.

Kevin was angrier at the fact that his former friends had been successful in breaking Sarah out and escaping. Kevin wanted to chase after them but was ordered to remain at the base and help reorganize. It wasn't too long after that that the team sent to cut off the intruders was ambushed and killed by the Brotherhood of Steel.

"We'll have to find a way to get back at them for this!" Kevin said angrily.

"Patience Kevin. We are in no position to take revenge upon our enemies. No, we must wait until they are at their most vulnerable then strike, much like what they did to us." The Devil said.

Kevin remained silent as he continued to weave his way through the pass. He would have his revenge even if it killed him.

* * *

The APC came to a halt as it reached the outskirts of one of the gates leading into New Peach Creek. The driver had raised a white flag to assure the inhabitants that they were friendly. The back of the APC opened and the medical team came out carrying Rolf and Rolen on stretchers. Sarah came out last.

"Let us through. We need to get these men to the medical center." Sarah ordered.

The two guards moved out of their way.

"Thank you, also where is Double D?"

"I believe he is currently at his quarters. Do you need me to retrieve him for you?" the guard asked.

"Just tell him to meet me at the medical center." Sarah said.

Double D anxiously twiddled his thumbs at his desk. He had passed out due to exhaustion and awoke the next morning to find out that Rolf, Rolen, and Marcus had left to rescue Sarah. It had only been a little over a day and he was already worried about the condition of his friends. They could have been killed or captured for all he knew. Edd had tried to attend to some of the mounting tasks on his list of things to do but couldn't focus. Edd was being pushed to his breaking point. Edd still hadn't fully recovered from his two best friends, Marie, and Jonny leaving. The only question Edd had was how many more of his friends would leave him?

A knock on the door broke his chain of thought. The last thing Edd wanted to engage in was human interaction but his character wouldn't allow him to keep someone waiting at the door. Edd begrudgingly made his way to the door and opened it. Jake Starnes was at his door, one of the many gate guards.

"Sorry to bother you sir but someone wishes to meet you at the medical center." Jake said.

"Does this someone have a name perchance?" Edd questioned.

"She didn't give me a name but her and a medical team arrived at the gate not five minutes ago in an APC."

"That's strange but I'll go check it out. You can return to your post" Edd said.

Jake nodded and walked off back towards the gate.

Edd closed and locked the door to his quarters and briskly walked towards the medical center. He was genuinely confused by the news and had to know now who was calling for him. Edd soon arrived at the medical center and saw Nazz, Kelly, and several of the nurses operating on an unconscious Rolen and an injured but conscious Rolf. Edd was taken aback even more when he saw Sarah sitting in the corner.

"Sar- Sarah? Is that you?" Edd questioned.

"Yes, it's me. And I have some disturbing news for you." Sarah said getting to the point.

"Where's Marcus?" Edd worriedly asked.

"I was getting to that. He was taken by a group of armored warriors. I have no idea where they went but a group of men dropped off Rolf, Rolen and I here before leaving. They threatened to kill anyone who tried to follow them." Sarah finished.

Edd sat down into a nearby chair after receiving the news. He still didn't even know the condition that Rolf and Rolen were in but it felt like he had been hit by a ton of bricks. Another one of his friends gone and two more were fighting for their lives on the operating tables before him. Edd suddenly snapped back to reality when Sarah slapped him.

"Ow! What was that for Sarah?" Edd questioned as he rubbed his burning cheek.

"You have two friends who need you right now more than ever! You can think about this later!" Sarah yelled.

Edd knew Sarah was right and quickly stood up and check up on his friends. Rolen was in bad shape and had lost a lot of blood. They had managed to slow the bleeding to a trickle but he was still in critical condition. Rolf on the other hand was fairing much better. The bullet had struck his shoulder but hadn't caused too much damage.

"Hey Rolf, How are you doing?" Edd asked.

"Rolf is fine brainy Ed boy but Rolen is in bad shape."

"Yes, Rolen is going to need a blood transfusion if he is going to live." Kelly said.

"Do we know his blood type?" Edd asked.

"No, but we have the device to find out. Nazzerine get on that!" Kelly said.

"Yes, we'll need to find a donor ASAP!" Edd ordered.

Nazz quickly began to administer the test and after a few minutes gathered an answer.

"We're in luck; his blood type is AB+." Nazz said.

Edd quickly rolled up his sleeves and pulled his chair over next to Rolen.

"Let's begin the transfusion then shall we." Edd said.

Kelly grabbed the supplies they would need for a blood transfusion while Nazz and the other nurses worked to sanitize everything. Nazz prepared and cleaned a spot on Edd's arm for the transfusion. Kelly inserted the cannula into Edd's arm. Edd watched as his life force traveled through the tube and into Rolen's body where it would be put to work towards saving Rolen's life. The medical staff closely monitored Edd and Rolen. They could see the color returning to Rolen's face but noticed the life leaving Edd's. They had been at it for almost two hours and every time they asked if Edd needed a break he refused.

It was going on midafternoon and Edd by this point was feeling dizzy and nauseous. His vision had also become clouded and was having a hard time keeping his head up. He knew that he had given a lot of blood but wanted to be sure that he had given Rolen enough. Finally Edd couldn't keep his head up any longer and allowed himself to slouch in his chair. Not too long after that he could feel the cannula being removed from his arm. He could hear voices but they sounded distant and muffled. He could feel himself being lifted from the chair and carried outside. Edd felt like he was being carried for ages but eventually felt himself being laid down on his bed. He could hear more clearly now what the people were saying.

"He should be alright, just needs some rest." Nazz said.

"What about Rolf and Rolen?" Sarah asked.

"Rolf will fully recover and hopefully the transfusion did the trick for Rolen. I'm sure it will be quite some time before he's up and going again but he'll at least be alive." Nazz concluded. "But what about Marcus?"

"I'm not sure. They said they were taking him in for 'questioning' but who knows what that actually means. It just didn't make any sense; Marcus acted as if he actually knew those people." Sarah explained.

"That is strange… I hope he's alright." Nazz said sadly.

"Same here. Well we should leave and let Edd rest." Sarah advised.

The two girls left Edd who was already trying to figure out who these armored men are, how Marcus knew them, and what information Marcus had that they wanted. Edd knew that Marcus had a shady past but what business would he have with these heavily armed warriors? Edd could feel a headache coming on and decided that he would rest now and think later.

* * *

Eddy couldn't help but have a feeling of déjà vu as he found Ed and himself lying on cots again in the medical bay. After the battle Eddy found himself once again waking up in the medical bay but this time with a new set of Senior Initiate ranks lying next to him. In fact everyone in his squad who had survived had been promoted. They were now ready to move onto some more advanced training.

"Jesus Ed, how did we end up in this same exact situation?" Eddy asked.

"Beats me Eddy." Ed said then let out a chuckle.

Eddy also let out a chuckle as he looked around the room. Eddy's smile faded as the gravity of the situation dawned upon him. Both he and Ed were pretty lucky compared to a lot of the other guys in the medical bay. Hell, at least they actually made it to the medical bay! A lot of guys didn't even make it back from the battle. Eddy could still vividly remember the deaths of his fellow squad members. Young and vibrant people much like himself and Ed. The only difference being that he and Ed had made it back while they hadn't. Eddy mentally tallied this situation up as life number two of his nine lives. The time spent with the Brotherhood had caused Eddy to really start contemplating life and how precious it is. How easily it is given and taken away.

"Ed. What's happened to us? What happened to those lazy summer days spent by the river back in Peach Creek? What happened to scamming the kids out of money to buy jawbreakers? Where has our childhood gone to, the innocence we once had?" Eddy questioned.

This caught Ed completely off guard. It wasn't like Eddy to get too emotional about things but times are different now. And now more than ever Ed wished Edd were here to answer all of these tough questions

"I'm not sure Eddy. I wish Double D was here. He would know what to say." Ed responded

"I'm not sure if Double D even has the answers to those questions." Eddy said.

Without warning the halls outside of the medical bay were filled with the sounds of someone yelling.

"Hey! Take it easy I'm complying now! Christ!"

"What the hell is going on?" Eddy asked as he tried to get a better view of what was going on.

There was a short man being dragged off by several Brotherhood guards. He was screaming and fighting back but with very little success as he was too small to be much of a threat physically.

Ed and Eddy watched as he was dragged past the door to the medical bay.

"Wow Eddy, he sort of looks like you!" Ed said happily.

"Shut up Ed! I'm not that short!" Eddy yelled.

More yelling came from the hallways until it finally stop.

"That's it I'm tired of lying around all day on this cot I'm going to go see what's going on!" Eddy exclaimed as he began to clamber out of his cot.

"Eddy, No! You'll get in trouble if you leave your cot!" Ed pleaded.

"Ed, no I'm not." Eddy said as he got out of his cot. "See, perfectly fine and not in trouble."

Eddy began to make his way to the entrance of the medical bay. Luckily for him none of the medical staff noticed him or could have really cared less that he was out of his cot. Eddy started walking towards where he thought they had taken the short man. Eddy could barely make out some muffled yelling coming from down the hallway and if Eddy had to guess he would say that the short fellow was most likely the cause of it. Eddy found the door where the noise was coming from and put his ear against the cold, metallic door. Eddy could hear the voices of General Barnaky, the High Elder, Head Scribe, who he assumed to be the short man, and several other high ranking Brotherhood officials Eddy assumed. Eddy listened carefully to what the men were saying.

"It's been three months! Where have you been? We had to go on total lockdown for almost an entire month!" General Barnaky screamed.

"Had the information you were entrusted with gotten into the wrong hands it could have been the end of the Brotherhood of Steel as we know it!" said an unfamiliar voice.

"Listen, I got held up alright! I didn't spill the beans about anything so calm the fuck down!" an angry voice retorted.

"Then what held you up for three months?" the High Elder questioned.

Eddy wondered who this guy was if disappearing for some time could make the Brotherhood this paranoid. Eddy was too distracted with his own thoughts to notice a Brotherhood guard coming up from behind him. Suddenly Eddy felt someone roughly grab and restrain him from behind.

"What do you think you are you doing?" the Brotherhood guard asked Eddy angrily.

"Uhh…" Eddy knew he was caught and had no idea what to do.

The door Eddy had just been listening at opened up revealing the highest ranking individuals in the Brotherhood of Steel. Eddy now wished that he would have just listened to Ed this one time. The guard pushed Eddy into the room and shut the door behind him.

"Shit." Eddy cursed.

"Son! Do you know what the punishment is for listening in on a classified Brotherhood meeting?" General Barnaky yelled.

"No- No sir." Eddy replied.

"Well I can assure you that it doesn't end well for you!" Barnaky yelled and then continued to ream Eddy for several minutes.

Marcus took this time to examine the young man being yelled at before him. He had never seen him but something about him seemed familiar. Marcus thought back and remembered a conversation he and Edd had had about his friends. After a few moments Marcus realized that this guy fit the description of one of Edd's friends.

"Hold on a second… are you Eddy? Edd's friend?" Marcus asked.

"Yeah… how do you know my name?" Eddy questioned.

"You seemed to fit the description that Edd gave you." Marcus said.

Eddy was caught off guard by the fact that this guy knew who Edd was. If anything Eddy considered it a Godsend considering it got the General off of his back for a few seconds.

"You know Edd?" Eddy questioned.

"Yes, I do."

"How are he and the others doing?"

"Well, good and bad…" Marcus started.

"Alright that's enough! We still need to deal with this insolence of listening in on a classified meeting!" General Barnaky directed at Eddy.

Marcus began thinking on how he could get Eddy out of this situation. The last thing he wanted to tell Edd when he got out of this situation was that he got one of his best friends killed. He needed to come up with something that would impress all of the Brotherhood leaders. That's when it finally dawned upon Marcus as to what he needed to do.

"I wouldn't punish Eddy just yet. In fact Eddy plays a very important part of my plan on how to make the Brotherhood stronger and more influential than ever. You see there are two settlements in the same region where you just finished destroying that Raider camp in the mountains. These settlements have more influence than you may be aware of. Of course you're the Brotherhood so I'm going to assume that you already know of these two settlements. Both Square Bot City and New Peach Creek have a common enemy; Raiders. The Raiders are also an enemy of yours. Now Eddy here is very close friends with the leader of New Peach Creek who in turn is close with the leader of Square Bot City. I have also come to the conclusion that you guys have probably taken some heavy losses recently after having a quick glimpse of your medical bay. I would say that you guys need some new recruits at the very least or better yet a nice set of allies. I believe that Eddy here would have the ability to convince his friend that siding with the Brotherhood of Steel would bring upon prosperity for everyone and I'm sure you all would agree with me. Together you could erase the Raiders from this region and bring forth prosperity in this a part of the Wasteland. But you could very easily just throw out my idea and kill Eddy here as well as your chances of forming any sort of alliance with them."

After Marcus's longwinded speech the Brotherhood leadership was completely silent as they pondered Marcus's convincing words. While the Brotherhood stood by their values and wanted to punish Eddy they also knew that they would need allies for the future.

"You present a strong case Marcus but the Brotherhood must have time to think about what you've said." said General Barnaky. "We will conclude our previous meeting at a later date."

"In the meantime Marcus, you may stay in the barracks." said the High Elder.

"As for you Senior Initiate Eddy, Paladin Stone will hear about this and I know for a fact he will not be pleased with your insolence and lack of military bearing!" General Barnaky scolded.

The Brotherhood officials began to discuss what Marcus had said and a guard escorted Eddy and Marcus out of the room.

Eddy and Marcus stared at each other for a moment before Eddy broke the ice.

"Thanks for helping me out back there." Eddy said.

"Yeah no problem kid, I couldn't let Edd's best friend get into too much trouble." Marcus laughed.

Eddy laughed too. "Yeah, Double-D would have probably had a heart attack if he heard about this. But do you really think that my friends and I will be able to go and see the rest of our friends back at this New Peach Creek place?" Eddy questioned.

"Hopefully it will work out that way. I'm sure you and your friends here want to see their friends. Especially after what you guys have been through."

"Yeah… war is hell." Eddy said solemnly.

"Agreed." Marcus replied.

"So how is everyone doing then?" Eddy asked.

"Not too bad…" Marcus began.

Marcus quickly told the story of how Edd had helped start a colony, Kevin's betrayal, The Raider attack, Sarah's capture, How Marcus, Rolf, and Rolen had recaptured her and eventually the Brotherhood's intervention.

Eddy was happy to hear that his friends were doing better than he was. Granted he was worried about Rolf. Eddy didn't know who this Rolen guy was but if he had helped out Edd then he considered him a friend. But what really grinded Eddy's gears were hearing about what Kevin had done. He knew Kevin had had a rough past but how could he just betray everyone like that? Eddy promised that he would make Kevin pay for the harm he had caused. Eddy knew that he needed to see Edd and the rest of his friends.

"Well, let me go introduce you to Ed." Eddy said.

"Sure, let's go." Marcus replied.

The two walked in silence the rest of the way to the medical bay where Eddy introduced Ed to Marcus.

"Eddy! Where did you go?" Ed asked.

Eddy looked at Ed dumbfounded. "Ed- you know what never mind about that but Ed meet Marcus. He has been taking care of our friends while we were gone." Eddy said.

"Hi Marcus! How is Double-D doing?" Ed asked.

"He's doing great and so is your sister and the rest of your friends."

"Well, except for Kevin of course…" Eddy added.

"What happened to Kevin?" Ed asked.

"Don't worry about it Ed's it's not all that important anyways." Eddy said quickly.

"Okay! I'm so hungry we should go get some food!" Ed suggested.

"Yeah, that sounds good. Then we can introduce Marcus to the rest of our gang." Eddy said.

"Fine by me kid you just lead the way."

The nurses allowed Ed and Eddy to go to the cafeteria after having been convinced that they were well enough to walk there on their own. The trio walked down the hallways until they reached the bustling cafeteria. Eddy scanned the room and spotted Jonny, Marie, and Locke sitting at a table. Jonny noticed them and waved them over to the table.

"Hiya guys! Are you feeling any better?" Jonny asked.

"Yeah, a hell of a lot better." Eddy responded as he sat down.

Ed ran to the cafeteria line to go get food while Marcus took his seat at the table.

"Who's this?" Marie asked.

"The name's Marcus and I believe I have some good news for you guys. How would you all like to take some time off to see your friends?" Marcus asked.

"Like our friends from Peach Creek?" Jonny asked.

"Yeah, them." Marcus answered.

"Guys, Marcus here has been with our friends since we left and apparently they have started a new settlement. This may be our chance at a new home!" Eddy said excitedly.

"Yeah but we left so we could be free." Marie said.

"Does it look like we're free? Maybe we thought we were at first but now we're stuck under the command of someone else again. Apparently Edd is the mayor of this new settlement which means we can do what we want." Eddy said.

"Well, I'm sure you won't be completely free from the Brotherhood." Marcus added. "I tried to free myself from them and now look at the position I'm in. You can run from them but eventually they'll find you again. I'm afraid that this is something you'll be stuck with. Sure, I spend a few weeks out in the field at a time but I'm not truly free. I still have a mission to do and a report to bring back. Perhaps one day we'll all be free once again but I'm afraid that that day is not today." Marcus concluded.

"…Still, a little time off may do us some good." Locke added. "I may not know your other friends but I would enjoy being able to take some time off away from the Brotherhood."

"You know maybe you're right. A little time off may be for the best." Marie admitted.

"Maybe we could still get that freedom" Eddy said. "I mean we're going to have to go there and help with the formation of this alliance. Perhaps we can convince them to station our squad there to help build up relations. I mean we could argue that since we know some of the locals it would make the process go by more quickly."

"Not a bad idea Eddy." Marcus said.

The table suddenly jolted as Ed sat down with his two trays of food. He began stuffing his face with food making the people around him feel slightly nauseous.

"Hey Monobrow, got some news for ya." Eddy said.

"What is it Eddy?" Ed asked with food in his mouth before returning to eating.

"We're going to see Double-D." Eddy said.

"Yeah! We get to see Double-D!" Ed mumbled as food flew out of his mouth.

* * *

Edd woke up during the middle of the night with a slight headache. He was still feeling slightly nauseous from the blood transfusion but better than before. Edd got up slowly and decided to go check up on Rolf and Rolen. Edd meandered through the camp and towards the medical bay where he found Nazz and a few other nurses monitoring Rolf and Rolen. They were both completely out of it when he approached them.

"Rolf fell asleep about an hour ago and Rolen has stabilized but hasn't woken up yet." Nazz said.

"I'm sure he'll wake up sometime tomorrow." Edd said.

"I sure hope so. How are you feeling?" Nazz asked.

"I'm doing alright, just got a lot going on right now." Edd replied.

"I can imagine." Nazz said sadly. "You've got a tough job but you're doing a great job so far."

"Thanks Nazz." Edd yawned and stretched. "I think I'm going to return to my quarters so good evening Nazz, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Alright, see you later Double-D." Nazz said as she waved goodbye.

Edd also waved goodbye then made his way back home. Edd opened the door and sat down at his desk. He let out a long sigh before saying to himself.

"I wish Ed and Eddy were around."

It had been close to a month if Edd had to guess since he had last seen his best friends and he was sorely missing them. His biggest worry was if they were even still alive. It was thoughts such as these that brought tears to Edd's eyes. Edd found that he couldn't control the swift flow of tears running down his cheeks. He hadn't cried in a while so being able to release all of the stress helped to relieve him of his burden. However, Edd could still feel pain in his heart as he continued to think about the possibility of never seeing his friends again. Edd suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion hit him and so laid his head down on his desk and before he knew it was out like a light.

Edd sat up suddenly by the sound of someone rapping at the door. He shook his head a bit to wake himself up and made his way to the door. It looked to be rather early in the morning from what Edd could tell looking out the window in his home. Double-D made it to the door and opened it only to have his heart stop. Standing before him were Ed, Eddy, Marcus, Jonny, Marie, and an unknown individual and what he assumed was his pet wolf.

"Ed… Eddy?" Edd said slowly.

"How've you been Sockhead?" Eddy asked smiling from ear to ear.

"We are together once more!" Ed shouted as he grabbed Edd and Eddy in a bear hug. The others joined in as well forming a circle around the Eds.

"Plank says that you look tired Double-D!" Jonny said.

"Yeah, a lot has happened since you guys left. How did you guys know where to find me?" Edd replied.

"We just asked where you lived." Eddy replied.

"That and this house totally has your name written all over it." Marie added.

"What do you mean?" Edd asked.

"Boring, organized, and there's a plaque outside that literally has your name on it." Marie said with a grin.

"Ha-Ha, very funny." Edd replied sarcastically but with a smile.

"I hate to break up this beautiful moment but I have some news for you kid." Marcus said.

Ed released Edd and Eddy from the hug.

"What's going on Marcus?" Edd asked.

"I'm really going to have to catch you up to speed." Marcus said.

Marcus and Eddy explained in detail everything that had happened since they had left and the deal made with the Brotherhood as well as Edd's account of what had happened since they left.

"So you're saying that this Brotherhood of Steel wishes to make an alliance and provide us with protection in exchange for resources and our aid when they call for it? Why did they only send you guys?"

"They sent us because Eddy convinced them that you would be more willing to join if they sent someone you trusted." Marcus replied.

"I see well I guess I had better get ready to go see Alloy then." Edd said.

"Ed, Marcus, and I will come with you." Eddy suggested.

"Well, maybe better if I stayed here and ran the place in Edd's absence. Not sure if Alloy would be too happy to see me again." Marcus said nervously.

"Yeah, but you technically weren't selling the locals real drugs." Eddy said.

"True, but you try and tell Alloy that. It won't work trust me I tried." Marcus said.

"Why did you even pose as a drug dealer to begin with?" Edd asked.

"Listen, it wasn't one of my better ideas but we're wasting time here talking about this."

"Marcus is right, let's be ready to move out by this afternoon." Edd ordered. "The rest of you who aren't going can stay here and catch up with the others."

Everybody dispersed throughout the camp while Ed, Edd, and Eddy made their way towards the supply depot to pick up some supplies for the journey.

"The rest of the squad will be moving in once the deal has been made." Eddy said.

"How many more would that be then?" Edd asked.

"Four more Initiates, a Squire, and Paladin Stone." Eddy answered.

"Not sure that I'm completely sure of what you mean." Edd admitted.

"Wow! Eddy you know something that Double-D doesn't know!" Ed exclaimed.

"Yeah you're right Ed, this is history right here!" Eddy said.

Double simply smiled and shook his head. He missed times like these.

"Yes, I suppose you guys know something that I don't." Edd admitted.

The three of them laughed together in unison and cherished this moment. It had been far too long since they had had the time to really enjoy themselves especially as a group. The three of them had experienced true horror since their journey had begun and needed some time to get away from it all.

Ed was happy that he and his two best friends were back together again. Ed truly did enjoy being a part of the Brotherhood of Steel but he also missed seeing Edd, and the others, especially Sarah. That's when it hit Ed.

"Wait guys I need to go to baby sister!" Ed yelled as he started running in the opposite direction.

"Shit! Ed wait!" Eddy yelled.

"Yes, please hold on Ed!" Edd added.

Edd and Eddy sprinted after Ed who easily outran them as he searched the camp for his sister. Ed was shouting out Sarah's name as he searched inside of nearby tents and buildings looking for his baby sister. Anyone unfortunate enough to be outside at the time had the great displeasure of having Ed up in their face asking if they had seen Sarah. Edd apologized to everyone that they passed as they fought to catch up with Ed. Ed eventually made his way to the medical center where Nazz was attending to Rolf and Rolen. Sarah was sitting in a chair and chatting with Nazz and Kelly.

"Sarah!" Ed yelled as he ran towards his sister.

Sarah looked up at the calling of her name and was shocked to see that it was Ed who had yelled it. She couldn't believe what she was seeing, her idiot brother and his friends running towards her. It reminded her of old times until Sarah finally snapped out of it and got up quickly.

"Ed, is that you!" Sarah shouted back.

Rather than receiving a verbal response Sarah found herself in one of Ed's signature bear hugs. Sarah was in shock as she returned her brother's embrace. She had feared that the worse had come upon him while he was out in the Wasteland but he had returned. It was then that Sarah truly realized how much she had missed her brother. Sarah knew that despite her cruel interactions with Ed in the past she loved her brother and would do anything for him.

"I can't believe that it's actually you!" Sarah said.

"Ed is home once more!"

Nazz was taken aback by the whole situation especially when she saw Edd and Eddy trailing slightly behind.

"Ed! Eddy! When did you guys get back?" Nazz exclaimed.

"Early this morning." Eddy replied as he eyed Kelly.

"Are the others here?"

"Yes, the others were actually just at my home but I sent them off to meet the others." Edd replied. "We actually need to get going soon to go and see Alloy."

"Why are you guys going to see him?"

"Yes, Ed boy why are you going to see the metal man?" Rolf asked having just woken up.

"We are going to meet with Alloy to discuss the terms of forming an alliance with the Brotherhood of Steel." Edd replied.

"Hey Rolfie boy you feeling alright?" Eddy asked.

"Yes, Rolf is good."

"What's the Brotherhood of Steel?" Nazz asked.

"Well I had better let Ed or Eddy answer that question for you." Edd said.

Eddy looked over at Ed and Sarah and saw that they were oblivious to what was going on as they caught up. It was a weird sight considering how Sarah normally treated Ed but Eddy was glad that they were getting along.

"Well seeing as Lumpy is preoccupied I'll fill you in on the Brotherhood of Steel. They're basically a militaristic group that has made it their purpose to rid the Wasteland of scum and lowlifes in an attempt to bring order back to the Wasteland. They also saved my life as well as the others not too long after we left. They've trained us in the art of warfare and killing. It's been tough and honestly I'm a bit tired of it all."

Edd was pained to hear Eddy's words. He knew that something was a little off about Eddy and hearing this only confirmed it. Edd wasn't completely sure of what all Eddy had been through since Eddy didn't really explain in detail any of the missions he and the others had been on. In fact none of them spoke much about it.

"Well, you're home now Eddy so you can rest and maybe when you guys get back from your trip all of the cul-de-sac kids can get back together to celebrate your safe return!" Nazz suggested.

"If it's alright with you guys maybe I could tag along too, I'd love to meet all of you guys!" Kelly beamed.

"That sounds like a great idea to me!" Eddy said.

"I agree." Edd added.

"Perhaps by then Rolf will be able to join you guys in the festivities!"

"And hopefully Rolen will have woken up by then." Nazz said as she returned her attention to him.

"How is he?" Edd asked.

"He's still stable but just hasn't woken up yet. I hope he hasn't slipped into a coma. We're planning on doing some tests today to see so pray for the best."

"Will do." Edd said quietly. "Well I believe we should be going now. Come on Ed!"

"Coming! I'll tell you more of my adventures later!"

"Yeah, that would be nice!" Sarah said.

Ed, Edd and Eddy began making their way back towards the supply depot when Eddy suddenly turned around and ran up to Kelly.

"Hey, we haven't really met each other but I'm Eddy!" Eddy said as he offered his hand.

"Oh, hey Eddy, I'm Kelly!" Kelly replied as she shook Eddy's hand.

"Cool! Well I gotta go but maybe we hang out sometime!"

"Yeah, that would be cool, see ya!"

Eddy ran back to catch up to Ed and Edd who were watching him.

"What was that about Eddy?" Edd questioned.

"What, I was just introducing myself." Eddy replied.

"I think Eddy likes her!" Ed said as he laughed.

"No! I just didn't want to be rude and not introduce myself! Eddy defended.

"No reason to get upset Eddy. Kelly's a good person." Edd said.

"Eddy and Kelly sitting in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G! Ed teased.

"Quit it Ed! That's not true, besides there aren't any trees left anyways!" Eddy yelled.

"Well, technically there are burnt trees." Edd added.

"Whatever, let's just get this over with." Eddy sighed.

Ed and Edd started laughing followed by Eddy. Just like old times.

* * *

**A/N:** _Well I'm not sure when I'll be posting another chapter but I haven't given up on this story yet. I actually just recently got a notification that one of my favorite authors is leaving the site so that gave me some motivation to not make you guys feel the way I do right now. I hoped you enjoyed the chapter so leave me a review about what you liked and didn't like or something you would like to see in the future. Until next time._

_Evil Tim_


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